


The Train

by DeusLux



Category: Original Work
Genre: Alternate Universe, Blood, Blood and Gore, Body Horror, Gore, Graphic Description, Graphic Violence, Horror, Humanoid Monsters, Lessons, Minor Character Death, Monsters, Moral Based Violence, Moral Lessons, Morality, Morals, Murder, Nightmare Fuel, Parallel Universes, Psychological Horror, Psychological Torture, Psychological Trauma, Punishment, Terror, Trains, criminal activity, learning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-19
Updated: 2015-04-19
Packaged: 2018-03-24 19:45:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 33,224
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3782119
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DeusLux/pseuds/DeusLux
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Final boarding the Train<br/>Destination: Hell </p><p>When four friends commit a crime they are picked up by the Train and transported to a nightmarish paradise of punishment.<br/>With the help of others stuck in this world, they must run, survive and learn the meaning of redemption or face the horror of a no return trip.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

 “I don’t care what any of them say, they don’t boss me around without a fight.”

 “Don’t you think that was a bit harsh, Terry?”

 It was late on into the night and five teenagers patrolled the streets. The wet tarmac of the industrial estate gave no comfort from the cold winter air. The lights were dull and not giving out much light. The five teenagers whooped and screamed out in merriment and drunken stupor. They did not think of or consider others, but their own desires and wants.

 It wasn’t uncommon to find them in the estate. It was often free of people and they could drink in peace and without discipline.

 However tonight they had gone too far, and now they ran here to hide completely. Terry, the group’s largest personality, had battered a teacher who had scolded him earlier in the day. He had become violent in the last couple of months, but had never taken his anger out on someone else before. And now his friends had been dragged into it as accessories to attempted murder.

 They didn’t see why, they had just cheered him on. How was encouraging something so bad?

 It hadn’t meant to go that far.

 It never did.

 And now Terry was boasting about it. His girlfriend, Charlotte, was starting to express concern about it. She had a very strict father who would have really reined her in if he found out about this. She could see him screaming at her and he was not the type of man you wanted screaming at you, for any reason.

 Charlie was also starting to panic, he had to keep a clean record or his dream of the police would be out of the question. He was starting to feel sick with worry and looked pale; he was now long past talking to Terry. If he opened his mouth he would probably throw up.

 His cousin, Lauren, was rubbing his back not really bothered about what was going to happen to her. She was already out on bail with theft and threats. It wasn’t much of a problem now.

 Darrel was looking around him like a rabbit in a disco. Everything set him off at the best of the times, and now he was visibly flinching. He could feel the presence of the police closing in, but there was no point in telling Terry that, he rarely listened to him.

 Terry was cheering and smirking dangerously, looking like a maniac. He was looking at his hands, the palms were clean, but the knuckles on the other side were covered in dry blood.

 He had enjoyed punching the crap out of that bastard, hell; he could do it again and again and again if it meant that thrill again and again and again. It would be worth every second of prison time. He could keep on going; maybe even go farther with the next one. No one would stop him; it was because of his own misjudgment that he was on the run now. If he had kept on going for maybe a minute more, he would have walked away scot-free. He would remember that next time.

 The road got darker and it started to rain lightly. Eventually the buildings and road faded altogether. The road they stood on turned grey and smooth. A white line that hadn’t been there before ran beside them. The grey cut off into black and tracks were visible just beyond.

 A train station was clearly visible in an area where trains could not have possibly been. Seconds ago, this was a road and now they had seemingly stumbled onto a train station. The teenagers looked at the blackness around them.

 The tracks started to rattle and a train rushed into the stations before slowly coming to a stop. Once it had stopped the doors opened. The group looked at each other before walking in. The lights in the train were warm and calming.

 They sat down on the seats and doors closed. The train started to move.

 Charlotte leapt to her feet and ran for the door, trying to get it open “Wait! I don’t want to go anywhere! Open up, what’s going on?!”

 Charlie punched at the windows, he wasn’t screaming but the horror on his face made it clear that he couldn’t. They fussed and slammed the glass of the train as much as they could, but only succeed in making the windows smudged with their sweat.

 They calmed down when it became clear that whatever they did was useless. They were exhausted. Charlotte started to weep softly. Charlie got down from his seat and pulled her to another. He sat down beside her and held her closely, trying to calm her.

 The other three hadn’t even noticed. It was like they were in a trance, sitting perfectly still, staring out the window. It wasn’t normal. Terry still had that crazy grin on his face; his palms were sat open and upturned on his lap.

 Charlie couldn’t help but feel sick and that was made worse by the screeching of the train’s breaks. They slowed to stop. The doors opened and they exited. Charlie wasn’t moving though. Charlotte didn’t seem to want to either.

 The doors closed and they started to move again. Charlie looked out the window and watched as his friends vanished out of sight into that blackness. He clung to Charlotte and knew deep inside he would never see his friends again.

 The blackness faded; the station disappeared and a wooden balcony became visible in its place. The group looked around them. The air was cold with the heavy rain outside. The large palm leaves were shining in the moonlight. The dark was solid; they could barely see the window beside them.

 Terry walked around the other side of the balcony and found a door. He tested it. It opened easily and he called his friends “Hey up, check this out!”

 They looked inside before walking in. They looked at the dark hallways and the rooms that came from them.

 Four doors ran down the right side, two on the left side and one at the end. The dark wooden walls made the air feel damp from the rain outside. The far door on the left was open, which allowed light to stream through onto the floor.

 They walked to the door and Terry let out a loud chuckle. The room was a simple kitchen. The dull grey room was filled with food and drinks; a stereo stood off to one side; streamers lay across the floor and counters; everything looked set for a party. They grinned at each other and ran into the room and grabbed handfuls of what they wanted. If a party was due, why not celebrate?

 The music was played loudly well into the night, not that anyone could tell with the weather. The rain persisted as well, but they didn’t care, they weren’t outside. The drinks and food disappeared slowly during the festivities.

 Darrell head for bed quite quickly, he was easily tired and would probably sleep well into the morning. Lauren waited until he was gone. She couldn’t have that dumb idiot telling Charlotte when they returned.

 Once the door was shut, Lauren slid over from where she sat on the counter and stroked Terry’s shoulder. He looked up at her and she smiled lustfully.

 “Now that Charlotte is out of the way, why don’t we” she paused, jumped down and wrapped her arms around his neck “have some fun? If you know what I mean…”

 Terry hummed and slid his hands down her hips to her bum “Nice ass you got there, don’t mind if I do.”

 He kissed and rubbed against her. She walked backwards, slamming into the island in the center of the kitchen, he leaned over to her, trying to pin her to the top. It would be a waste to push this food and drink off to the side though, so she pushed back hard enough to get him to move.

 They walked to one of the bedrooms on the other side of the hall. Lauren closed the door behind them and they started their rutting.

 Hours later, they were both asleep in the double bed. The rain outside still had not let up. Darrell had woken, sick, and was trying to see out the window. The bushes beyond the balcony didn’t reach too far before they opened up to a large sandy, puddle-filled beach appeared. On the other side grass grew and spread into tropical palm trees.

 Darrell watched for several minutes, sure he had seen what he had seen. Just beyond the tree line was movement. Very blurred movement but very much there. It moved from tree to tree slowly and fluently.

 It stopped after a while.

 His stomach churned and he heaved.

 Not wanting to soil his bed, he got up and walked to the bathroom. There was still noise coming from the kitchen but he dismissed it as one of his friends.

 He heaved more but reached the toilet on time. He threw up his stomach contents in the musky blue-grey water. He coughed and spat. The taste of bile clung strongly to his mouth and he walked to the kitchen to get a drink.

 The rummaging noise didn’t stop when he came in. He took a drink of some cola and licked his lips. He noticed some of the rubbish moving. It was as if a pig was rummaging through it. He moved round the table to get a better look.

 In the rubbish was a small brown furry creature, its back covered by countless cream quills. Tiny ears appeared and two beady black eyes followed. A pointed snout with a round brown nose appeared. It looked like a cross between a dog and a porcupine.

 Darrell started to back away, bottle still in hand. The creature hobbled over the rubbish, its lips peeling back over sharp teeth.

 The teenager dropped the cola and dashed out of the room. He ran into his room and slammed the door shut.

 His heart pounded in his chest. Whatever that creature was, it was clearly dangerous. He grabbed the chair beside him and pulled it against the door.

 Sure it wouldn’t hold long, but maybe he could get out in the meantime. He tried thinking, but nothing came to mind. His mind flashed with the movement outside and he felt his stomach churn. The door started banging, and he realized it was trying to get in.

 He lunged at the window, forgetting his earlier thought. He began sweating heavily, panting. His head felt light and his hand became cold and wet from the glass. He yanked, but the frame wouldn’t budge.

 He slammed his fist against the glass again and again. It wouldn’t break. Behind him, the chair rattled and he knew that it was slowly slipping. He heart pounded in his rib cage. He wasn’t going to get out of this room.

 The movement outside had come closer. Its black silhouette shining against the raining darkness. It looked like a person in a large raincoat and wellingtons, with thin legs.

 He froze. Someone was outside. If he could get their attention, then they may be able to help him out. He screamed and slammed on the window “Wait! Hey! Help me! Please! Hey!”

 The figure just stood there without moving for several minutes. His fists slowed and stopped. The figure turned and walked away out of sight. His heart skipped a beat. The chair rattled again and Darrell vomited again. He wasn’t going to get out alive. Tears started to run down his cheeks.

 He didn’t stand a chance.

 The chair moved this time. He could hear it growl, which resembled a cats’, as the creature pushed and shoved at the door. He figured if he timed it right, he could possibly get out. The chair wouldn’t hold forever. He ran for the door and opened it, the creature dashed in and charged straight into the foot board of the bed.

 Darrell leapt past it and out the door; he didn’t think to close it behind him. He ran for the front door and found it wouldn’t open, just as the window didn’t.

 He could hear the creature getting up again, so he bolted to the kitchen. The creature launched out of the bedroom after him. He rushed into the kitchen, but slipped on the cola he had spilled. He cracked his chin off the floor and groaned.

 The pain of hitting his chin however was nothing in comparison to the creature latching onto his leg. Its teeth sank deep. He squealed and tried to kick it away. It ripped a chunk from his calf. He howled. It ripped into his leg again and again. He could feel the haziness that comes before passing out closing in. He knew he didn’t have long left.

 The creature leapt up and bit into his neck. He passed out.

 Terry heard the screams and tried to ignore them. After a while they stopped, he knew Darrell was probably being an idiot or trying to pull a prank, it wasn’t going to work though. Lauran lay beside him, her brown hair covering her face. He didn’t really care though; she was a rough looking ticket.

 She rolled over and woke him completely. He groaned, knowing that he wouldn’t get over again. The door creaked open and he looked at it expecting to see Darrell. There was no Darrell though, just a dark shape on the floor. It was a spiky object.

 “What the fuck?” he sat up and glared at the shape. It moved into the room. Lauran woke and looked up at him as he stood.

 “Darrell! This isn’t fucking funny!” he could see his friend lying in the kitchen. He noticed the blood pouring from him and blending with the fizzy drink he had slipped on. Half his back and leg was missing, eaten off.

 He could feel bile raising his throat. A growl caught his attention. He looked down at the little animal by his feet as it latched onto his ankle and dragged him down. Lauran screamed as he fell. She couldn’t see what grabbed him, not that she wanted to see it.

 It crawled up Terry’s stomach as he screamed and tried to swat it away. It leaned over his head and latched onto his face. It tugged and he hollered. Lauran’s face was white; she scrambled out of the bed, naked, and ran to the front door.

 Terry’s cries increased as she managed to scramble to the door. She flung to it open but stopped at the person on the other side. The dark raincoat and wellingtons made them look human, but when it lifted its head it became clear it wasn’t.

 The face of this creature was missing, but it had two gouged out eyes, that looked like thick white balls glowing softly in a black face. Lauran screamed. It slowly opened its coat and black liquid spewed out of a black body.

 It poured onto the girl’s body and hissed and steamed as it melted her skin. She cried out, but no one heard.

 Outside, the rain continued. Far off in the tree line, a group watched as the building’s residence was torn apart.

 “Should we move on Luke?!”

 He looked at Lizz “No.”

 They knew their fate, and there was no point in interfering.

 They walked on.


	2. Chapter 2

 Neil, Derek, Connor and Ashley looked at the tropical paradise appearing around them. The train flew off without a second to think. Ashley turned in horror. He tried to run after the train as it faded completely.

 “Hey! Wait! Stop! Wait! What is this place?!” He leapt off the platform and landed in water. He splashed along until it was gone completely. He was about thigh high in water before he came to a complete halt.

 Connor brushed his dreadlocks back. Ashley was naturally paranoid, and this was not going to help him. He whistled over to his friend and beckoned to him. Derek was wading across to the sandy mounds sloping out of the water behind them.

 Neil stood in shock before falling onto his backside in the water. His shorts were completely soaked. Derek whipped back his dirty brown hair. He looked sick.

 Connor was the only one who appeared calm and seemingly unfazed by the change from Platt Fields to this sandy lagoon. It was bright and hot, this nice heat was completely different from Manchester’s sticky boil. He could see the sun high in the sky; yet it was already starting to get dark at home. That was odd.

 Odd. Not right.

 Not normal…

 Derek tapped his watch, trying to check the time, but the hands were dancing back and forth between four or five o’clock, he knew it was well after that, roughly ten o’clock. Were they on the train for that long?

 Ashley turned and looked at his friends wide eyed “What do we do?”

 Connor shrugged. What could they do?

 “Get out of the water!” came a scream.

 A girl with curly blonde hair burst out of a group of trees a few meters from where they stood. They turned to her as she screamed at them “Get out of the water! It’ll kill you! Get out of the water!”

 Her strained voice held such strong urgency that Neil leapt up and onto the sand banks. Derek started to back off too. Ashley ran to the sand with no time to really think why.

 The girl kept screaming at them “Hurry! Into the forest! Hurry! Get out of the water!” she pointed to the trees behind her. A young man with wiry brown hair appeared behind her. He tried to pull her behind him, but she fussed and struggled.

 “Get out of the water! Run! While you can! Move you idiots!” the teenager screamed, still trying to pull the girl out of the way. He managed to pull her around and hug her, trying to stop her insistent screams.

 Everyone started to run towards them, even Connor, who was still out in the knee high water. Ashley reached them first; he was white with fear.

 His cheeks turned grey as he ranted “What’s going on!? Where are we!? What’s happening!?”

 The boy was not much older than them, maybe even the same age, as was the girl. He grabbed the girl’s wrist as she shook. Derek and Neil bumped into Ashley, who was thrown almost onto his side.

 The boy looked at them seriously “Run! Come on!” he turned, pulling the girl with him. They started to run into the woods.

 Connor reached them as they started to run. Behind him, the water splashed and surged after him in a dark bulge. He turned just on time to see the bulge reach him, and out of the clear water exploded a black blurry mass. It landed on his arm and locked around it was sharp fangs.

 Connor screamed in pain and horror. On his arm was a large tadpole like creature with a flat disk shaped head, and horns coming from the corners of its jaw. It was biting his arm hard, blood squirted from the side of its mouth, it dripped down onto the sand, his shorts and it trickled down his leg.

 He slammed his fist onto the creature’s head, and it released him. It landed by his feet and tried to grab his ankle. He managed to kick it back into the water and started running behind his friends and the strangers, who had frozen up and watched.

 They sprinted into the forest. The trees grew tall and dark the deeper they went in; as they did the foliage grew thicker. They continued following the two strangers, even Ashley, who normally would have been far ahead of them, slowed his speed; so sure they knew where to go.

 Finally they slowed. They came to a large structure that looked like a crumbled stone fountain and ducked behind it. The moss growing on it was damp and dripping in places. They sat down under its shelter and breathed again. Connor fell, trying to nurse his wound.

 The girl sank into her friend’s arm, and he hugged her close “Thank goodness you found them Amy.” She just nodded, quivering and near tears.

 The boy turned to them “Are you okay?”

 Ashley was white with fear, Neil lower body was soaked and he was starting to get goose bumps on his arms. Derek was wide eyed at Connor’s wound, which was bleeding heavily even with the pressure he put on it.

 “What the hell was that thing?!” Neil demanded. His tan skin looked empty. He was shaking as well. Ashley was frozen with fear; naturally he was paranoid, worried and easily spooked.

 Connor was shocked; his coffee coloured skin was turning creamy around the injured arm. He was whimpering. The brown haired boy looked at him. He looked stressed and the dark shadows under his eyes didn’t improve his overall tired look.

 The girl, now close up, looked very similar to him. Her hair was platinum blonde, but her dark roots were showing. She was terrified.

 “You don’t really want to know what that creature was, but I can tell you there are more of them, and others like them. They won’t hesitate to kill you. So be on your guard at all times, even here.” The boy said in a very serious tone.

 They nodded “So what’re your names?”

 They each replied and pitched in for Ashley, who could do little more than dribbled out incoherent sounds. The boy nodded “I’m Luke, and this is my sister, Amy.”

 The girl looked up at them, tears falling down her face, and whispered a quick “Hello.”

 Derek frowned “What is this place? How did we get here? And how do we get home?”

 Luke lowered his head slightly “You don’t go home. And this place… this place is hell.”

 Everyone’s eyes widened. It actually caused Ashley to move. He leaned forward, placed his hands on Luke’s shoulders and squeezed. He was quaking heavily “What do you mean by ‘you don’t go home’?! This is just some joke, right?! This is just a game, right…?”

 He just shook his head. Ashley was starting to look dangerously ill; he fell back onto his bum and started to look limp. He was really quaking before Neil shook him. He still looked dazed but he didn’t pass out.

 Connor was starting to pant heavily. His arm was nearly grey, the blood was starting to turn brown in colour and was only coming down in thin, slow trickles. He was suddenly ten years older and miserably stressed. He looked like he was about to pass out as well, but he was too shocked to even teeter.

 A squealing noise came out from the trees. Everyone flinched.

 Luke looked at them “We have to get out of here soon.”

 He started to stand, taking Amy with him, when Connor started yelling at him.

 “I need a fucking doctor man! I need to stop this damn bleeding! Shit, it hurts!” everyone just stared at him. Luke looked at the group and then at Connor. He kneeled down beside the teenager.

 “There might be some bandages lying around, but I can’t guarantee that.”

 “What do you mean ‘lying ‘round’?! We’re in a friggin’ forest! I’m pretty sure that there aren’t some bandages just ‘lying ‘round’!” He howled. Luke scowled and grabbed his other arm, giving him some hard yanks until he stood.

 “Look! If we don’t move now, because of your screaming, we are going to die! How clear do I need to be on this!” he yelled into the other’s face.

 The gargling noise started to come closer. Before anyone else had a chance to turn, Ashley was dashing in the opposite direction. He was nearly out of sight when Luke threw both Connor and Amy ahead of him.

 Everyone started to follow after Ashley, running as fast as they could, not daring to turn around.

 They ran through the trees quickly. Luke caught up with Amy and they both reached out, taking each other’s hands. Ashley was still running a good length ahead of them.

 Neil looked down and noticed the small, thin path that led cleanly through the trees. Although Ashley seemed to be following it just by luck, Luke and Amy were following it perfectly. They were moving to every dip and curve almost as though if they left it for even a second they would be doomed.

 Connor was trailing behind; the loss of blood was starting to set in, but it was not enough to stop him yet. He was starting to stumble and trip though, just managing to stay on his feet. He was really starting to trail behind. Neil noticed and tried to press him on.

 “Connor, come on! It’s not much farther now! Keep going! Hurry!” he screamed.

 Connor snarled, “Fucking easy for you to say! Your arm isn’t a blood donor’s nightmare!”

 He started to speed up though. The blood from his arm was flowing quicker and heavier than before. The running was going to kill him. Neil grabbed his shoulder and pulled him onward. He forced him out in front and pushed him.

  _At least he won’t fall behind now!_

 Connor stumbled and tripped. Neil, despite nearly tripping himself, kept him straight and shoved him forward.

 They pressed on. The injured friend was sweating heavily and dragging his feet, threatening to fall all the time. His eyes were wide and glowing white, glossy. He was drifting out of consciousness and probably wouldn’t last much longer.

 Luke then appeared out the bushes beside them and pulled them down into it. They tumbled and landed on top of him and Derek. Ashley pulled Amy out of the way.

 They struggled a bit before calming again; once untangled they sat up and looked at Luke, expecting an answer for suddenly stopping. He checked on Amy, whose cheeks were red from running.

 He turned “We’re okay to stay here to talk for now.”

 “So we’re safe?”

 “Nowhere here is safe.” The girl panted, “You’d do well to learn to run like your friend here.” She pointed behind her shoulder to Ashley.

 Connor was slumped on his side and landed head first into the bushes beside them. He was rasping in as much air as he could, his eyes wide, pale.

 “He needs a doctor! We need to find a doctor!”

 “Shush! You won’t find a doctor, not even someone over twenty-three. That’s the oldest person here and he was training to be a mechanic.” He leaned over to the bushes and pulled them aside. His eyes widened and he pulled away.

 He turned to his sister “We have to get out of here.”

 She nodded and they started to crawl out of the bushes. Ashley joined them, automatically.

 Derek grabbed Luke’s leg and pulled him back “Where do you think you’re going? Why are we leaving?”

 Luke turned and pointed through the bushes again. Derek turned and looked in the same direction. Beyond a flat glassy area, hidden in the trees was a large curved stone structure. If the lads hadn’t know any better, they would have said it was an ammonite lying flat on its side.

 Derek frowned. He looked at Connor, who was panting heavily and sweat dripping from his cheeks. He looked at the shell again “Would there be any bandages in there?”

 “Probably, but it’s not worth the risk. You go in there, you’re not coming out.”

 “Look, mate, my friend is going to die here if we don’t get help fast. I’m willing to risk it if it will save him.”

 “He’s going to die anyway, leave it!”

 “No!” Derek stood and dragged Connor to his feet. He pulled him to the shell, stomping across the opening of weeds and dried grass. He reached the mouth of the shell and suddenly felt cautious.

 The air was cold, even just in the entrance. He noticed how dark this area was before he walked up to it, but now it gave him deeper chills than the cold. He walked straight into the curving tunnel.

 He had expected it to circulate, shrinking as it did, but it didn’t; it branched out into two different rooms. Both looked like classrooms. They vaguely resembled the school his niece went to. He could see the pictures that had been painted, scrawled pencil drawings of suns and smiling people. The tables still had pencils and pieces of paper scattered on their tops.

 Then he saw it.

 The black blur on the other side of one of the rooms.

 It was about his height, black and spiked, with a shiny texture. He squinted in the dull hue at the creature. It was covered in scales and looked sickly thin. Spines jutted out of its back, shoulders and head.

 It resembled the creature he saw before somehow. He ducked and swallowed. What if this creature was just as dangerous as the last one?

 His eyes caught sight of the thick black talons under the desks. Maybe even more dangerous.

 He was starting to regret his decision about coming in. Luke’s words rung in his head. He started to turn around when he heard a clunk in the other room. He looked for Connor and felt sick to his stomach when he realized he had pulled a chair back and sat in it.

 His paling face looked peaceful; he was smiling weakly at the room “I went to this school, Derek. Loved it here. I was so happy that I didn’t want to leave.”

 Derek felt the dread in his heart seep into panic when he realized that the other room also had a creature, and it was calmly walking over to him. Connor continued talking about his life at his old primary in delirium.

 He stomach clenched when the creature arrived at the side of the desk. Derek watched it stand there, staring at Connor as if it was listening.

 Derek noticed its feet took the shape of mutated spikes and two black diamond shapes dangled from where its ears should have been. He realized that it looked like an anorexic woman when it pulled its arm back.

 He launched forward. But it was in vain. The black appendage hit the back of Connor’s head. His face slammed into the desk. His nose and mouth hit with the most force. The crack echoed in Derek’s ears. Thick and loud. His stomach twisted and he heaved.

 Connor lifted his head, as if in shock, the blow knocking sense into him, as well as a few front teeth out between his lips. He flinched and threw himself into another chair as the arm came down again.

 He landed on the floor and crawled.

 The noise of the attacks attracted the other creature in. It stopped at Derek and stared at him as the other had with his friend. He leapt to his feet and darted around the monster. He ran into the other room and kneeled behind the teachers’ desk.

 The black abomination turned and slowly lumbered over to him. He was about to run when he noticed the white box on the table. The Red Cross glowed in the dull light.

 He grabbed the first aid kit and yanked it off the wood. The creature’s arm crashed into the dark surface and skidded off. He ducked away from it, hand barely intact. He leaped from the corner and scrambled under the desks. He crawled through the legs, pushing chairs away from his path.

 Connor was screaming and clattering around in the other room. It was the only noise asides from the moving chairs. It was almost quiet though.

 He was crawling through one row to another when the creature wondered down it after him. He pressed on. By the time his feet were neatly under the table it had reached him. It leaned down and looked at him. No noise came from its mouth, no mouth to make noises.

 He escaped the last line of tables and launched himself to his feet. His back clipped the edge of the table, knocking him back to his knees.

 The monster appeared at the end table and was stiffly walking up to him again. He scrambled to the exit.

 Connor appeared again, the other creature on his tail.

 They ran towards the exit when one of the creatures swung its arm violently at Connor’s legs. He toppled forward and landed on his stomach. His arm was still dripping blood, but it was just barely. He looked up at Derek, a desperate look on his face. Then he was gone, the last thing Derek saw of him was his dark arm as he pawed the ground.

 He continued staring when one of the creatures appeared out of the darkness for him. He turned and ran.

 Outside, in the forest, he dashed for the bushes where everyone had hidden. They were all gone, Neil included. He would have expected it of Ashley and the others but not Neil. He knelt in the bushes, wondering what to do next. Nothing had followed him out of the shell, thankfully, but how long would it be until they did? He started to feel sick with the thought, and when night falls, if night falls, what would he do then?

 The leaves beside him moved and he went to run again, but an arm grabbed him and pulled him back. He panicked and swatted at the fingers crushing his arm. The grip stayed firm.

 He was being pulled back. He turned and looked straight into Neil’s eyes. Pale grey eyes, very distinctive eyes, eyes Derek knew and trusted. They were eyes filled with relief.

 Neil pulled Derek to his feet and started him running. He dragged him down a small ridge to a thickly vegetated area. The others stood by some thin trees. Ashley had climbed one of the trees to look over the slope at the shell. He was sliding back down.

 Neil slowed and stopped. Adrenaline had run itself dry in Derek’s body, and now shock was setting in. He had been in two terrifying situations straight after each other. He looked at Neil, who was panting, and dribbled out incoherent noises.

 Luke stepped forward “Those shells always have monster in them. Clearly that was too much for your friend. They were probably after him anyway. Did you get anything?”

 Derek looked down at his hand, which was still clinging tightly to the first aid kit. He lifted it up and looked at them. Luke nodded.

 “What do you mean ‘they were probably after him’?” Neil piped in.

 “Well, sometimes the monsters target certain people. It may take a few attacks but they do eventually get their mark. They’ll kill anyone else they can if they are there, that’s not the point though, they are always after their target.”

 Ashley hopped down beside him “What do you mean by targets? Who are these targets?"

 Luke looked at him and sighed, “They punish people for their sins. If you have sinned then you are brought here to pay for your crimes.”

 “Petty car theft is something to die for, sure!” Neil scoffed.

 “It doesn’t matter, if you sin, you die. Simple, so try and stay alive.”

 Derek stepped forward; unsteady on his feet “How many more of those things are there? How do you kill them? How do we get home…?”

 “I told you, didn’t I? You don’t go home. Some of the creatures you can kill, but some you can’t. And yes, there are many more.”

 “You what?! Are you fucking kidding me?! Where are we going to go?! And how long before you’s two leave us for dead?!” Neil snapped.

 Luke was losing his patience. He scowled and snapped back “We have no intention of that! Sorry for being cold, but we’ve watched people like you die because of that kind of attitude! Too many! We are actually better staying together anyway!”

 Neil blinked “What…? So, you guys are going to stick with us?”

 “Yes, but don’t kid yourself into thinking we will stick with you if a monster makes you a target. My true loyalties are to my sister and my sister only.” Amy nodded beside him.

 She turned and looked at the trees behind them. She looked like a dog that had picked up a scent. Luke watched her “You hear something?”

 “Yes, but I don’t think it’s monsters.” As she finished, people started to pour out of the leaves. Young people at a range of ages. The youngest was at least ten and the oldest was in his early twenties. People of different genders, sizes, skin colour. Such a range of people.

 At their front was a woman with a wrestlers build; it was impossible to tell her age because her face was hard and well lived in. She walked with purpose, straight over to Luke and Amy, completely disregarding the others.

 “Well, well, long time no see.” She talked like someone of importance “I was wondering when we would see you again. You two are hard to kill aren’t you?”

 She was in Luke’s face. Close up, she looked like the teenager she was and was not much taller than Luke himself.

 Luke’s face twisted into pure disgust “You would think so, seeing how we’ve been here longer than you have.”

 “Doesn’t really matter how long you’ve-!”

 “Just proves who knows better at how to survive out here.”

 “Don’t interrupt me!”

 “I do what I like.”

 “You really are looking for a punch then!”

 “Go ahead, punch me! They’ll come after you next.”

 She stopped pulling her arm back. She let her fist drop. Derek had regained some colour back into his face. He had lost Connor getting this kit; he wasn’t going to let her take it. He placed it behind his back, but she had already noticed.

 “You! Give me that kit and you and your friends can join us.”

 Ashley looked at him and shook his head slowly. He was thinking the same thing. He walked over to Derek and stood beside him. He straightened his back and pulled him a deep breath. His friend wasn’t strong enough to go up again a girl this size right now. He could hardly stand.

 Neil stepped between them “And who put you in charge?!”

 “Me! And everyone behind me!” no one moved or spoke behind her. They were fearful but their eyes were trained on them. White-eyes fixed on one point. Them.

 “And you don’t think we should be allowed to join anyway? Box or no box? How do you know there is anything in it?”

 “Must be worth hiding.” The teen was jarred. She wasn’t stupid.

 Ashley stepped back “Let them join too, or you don’t get the pack.”

 Luke looked amazed. Amy’s eyes lit up.

 “Why should I?” confirming his assumption.

 “Because you won’t get the pack.” He took another step backwards.

 The girl took a step forward “All I have to do is catch you and then you’re argument is pointless.”

 “If you catch me. I’m the Region’s Champion Runner; three years in a row…” he watched her reaction “You won’t catch me.”

 Doubts started to spread on the girl’s face.

 Luke pitched in “He is good, ran all the way here from the beach and didn’t break a sweat. You should consider their offer Lizz.”

 She did. She frowned, spat and said begrudgingly “Fine.”

 Ashley kept a firm grip on the box as they went by. Luke pressed into the crowd with him and whispered “Thanks man.”

 He looked at Amy then back at her brother “An eye for an eye.”


	3. Chapter 3

 The large group walked for miles before stopping. Derek collapsed after all the running they had done. Normally he would be on Facebook with his friends talking about the next match by now. His sister would be begging for him to give her the chance to use the computer to talk to her mates. He should be home.

 Neil looked down at his friend with pity. Derek was lazy by nature, not designed for walking in this stuffy heat and running at all. Hence why he was slightly on the heavier side.

 He had learned that this large group was made up of teenagers from different times. The earliest was a pair of twins from the fifties and they were the newest to join. Luke and Amy were from the early eighties.

 Lizz was eighteen and came from the late eighties. She was the undeclared leader after Luke apparently. She refused to talk to anyone.

 The oldest person was twenty-three years old according to Luke and the youngest was eleven.

 Ashley had been pestered for the first aid kit for the last several hours. Everyone was suggesting they ‘hold it for a little while’ and ‘you don’t need to hold that this whole time’. He had been tempted to just bin it as soon as he could but didn’t, it had cost his friend’s life. At one point a fourteen year old tried to snatch it from him, but he simply lifted it above his head and the problem dissipated.

 Amy had taken to talking to him, interested in his running. Luke was never far from her. He seemed overprotective of her, but when he thought about it, if someone from his family had been there he would cling to them too.

 The group rested for a while. Luke and Amy sat with their three new traveling companions, keeping clear of everyone else.

 “What year was it in your time?” Luke asked off-handily.

 “2012. Why? What year was it for you?”

 “1982. Thirty years, I should be forty-seven by now.”

 “Wait, wait! Forty-seven? But you’re only seventeen, you haven’t aged since then?”

 “Clearly not. Not the kind of eternal youth we all hoped for.”

 “You don’t fucking say!”

 Silence followed. It wasn’t awkward. In fact it was nice to have nothing but the others chattering, it reminded them all of school or college.

 Ashley broke the silence “You and that Lizz girl don’t get along too well… why?”

 Luke sat back a bit “Well… let’s just say Lizz doesn’t like being told what to do. When we first arrived, everyone who came with us was killed off quickly. We survived because of pure luck. Dumb luck. Or bad luck should I say. Anyway, we travelled through this place for, gosh… must’ve been years. Learned every bit of this island by heart. Learned about every common monster here.

 “After a while, Lizz came along with a few others. We didn’t think they would last long, no one ever did you see, but they did. At first they listened to us, but probably more out of fear than anything else, then, as they got used to things, they started to stop relying on us. We didn’t mind at first, it lessened the burden on us. After a while of people under our responsibility dying, it becomes a relief for others not to rely on you so heavily.

 “Others joined, but things went badly. They started to ignore our advice. Then the worst possible thing happened. Those monsters attacked us in our sleep. We knew what to do and managed to get out but many others were killed, there were twenty of us in the beginning, but it went down to just five in one night, Then the other three, Lizz included, blamed us for what happened.

 “We stuck together though, it was safer that way. We stuck together. They started to listen to us again. Again people started joining our little group, and well… you can see how big it’s grown.

 “But a little while ago, we were attacked again. Thankfully, not many people were killed. But they blamed us again. Ganged up against us. So we left them.”

 Everyone started to stand again. The group stood up and followed them. Amongst the group was a girl with fawn coloured hair. She seemed distant from the others and made a point of walking at the back. Luke spotted her and walked over.

 “Good to see you’re still alive Hayley.”

 She looked up at him, her eyes empty and cold “It’s good to know you’re alive too. How’s Amy?”

 Amy appeared beside her brother and waved. She nodded, but her face didn’t change. Neil noticed her thick winter coat and wondered if she was hot in it.

 “Have any of your ‘friends’ survived?”

 “None now. A group of hedgehogs got the last one. Ripped him apart. I’m the last one now.”

 Luke nodded. He dropped back to his new group. Neil nodded at the girl “Who is she?”

 “Name’s Hayley. She arrived here not long ago. Doesn’t seem to remember what brought her here. Either that or she refuses to tell. I don’t blame her.”

 Derek contemplated this for a while. His mind started to place things together when he realized something “Do you actually remember going on the train?”

 “Actually no, I don’t. The last thing I remember was the park before being on that beach.” Neil confirmed. Ashley walked closer, more interested in the conversation.

 “No one ever does. I’ve tried hard but I could recall nothing from it, the closest I ever got was a feeling. I recall feeling a great urge to get on the train, needing to. Then my mind goes blank. It’s like a huge gap in my memory.”

 Everyone looked at each other. They related to that feeling. A creepy neutrality fell on the group. They all felt oddly connected by their unusual circumstances. Ashley shivered. He rubbed his arms until the feeling stopped.

 “You mentioned monster before.” he said, “What did you mean by that? Are there many more? What are they?”

 Amy answered this time “There are many monsters out here. Countless amounts.”

 Luke continued, “There are three types of monster that we have found so far. Common monsters, those appear everywhere, sometimes in mass, and can be killed. Boss monsters, there are only a few of those, rarely more than one appears at a time, and they can’t be killed. Then there are custom monsters; they appear when there is a target for them to kill. They represent things to the target, then they vanish. You can’t kill those either as far as we know.”

 “We know every common monster here.” Amy explained.

 “So you only know about the common ones?”

 “Well, the bosses change every now and then and there are several too. They don’t appear too often thankfully.”

 “And can you tell them apart from these other monsters?”

 “Sure, they look like humans.”

 The boys stopped. Luke turned and looked at them. He frowned at them. The silence continued but the question that didn’t pass by ear passed by eye. Their faces held the same expression.

 What did he mean by ‘humans’?

 How human?

 Luke didn’t answer straight away though. He didn’t continue walking though. It was like he was letting their minds wonder for the enjoyment of it. Finally he answered their silent question.

 “What do you think I mean?”  He put his hands into his pockets. They looked at him in horror. Images played in their minds like a film.

 What if they walked into the group and no one noticed? What if they walk around with them and kill them in their sleep?

 Derek frowned. He had seen these monsters properly, and although they looked vaguely human in shape, they still looked like monsters. He didn’t think that they really looked like humans completely.

 He stepped forward “I’ve seen those monsters. They don’t look that much like humans. Stop trying to scare us.”

 “Yeah, you may have seen customs. Not bosses. You’ll see what I mean when you see one.”

 Butter didn’t seem to melt on this lad and it annoyed Derek. A small but loud part of him told him to remain on his good side to stay alive though.

 No one had noticed Amy and Hayley walking ahead them. They had stopped talking and were watching them. Amy looked concerned but Hayley looked indifferent. The rest of the group had walked ahead out of sight.

 A tall, lanky man with frizzy brown hair appeared at the brow of the slope behind them. He looked about twenty.

 “Marvin?” Amy asked.

 He started down the slope and walked causally past the girls. He didn’t seem to want to cause problems “If you’re going to use this little technique to get away again, tell me. I’m coming with you this time.”

 “You’d be best with them.” Hayley replied.

 “Yeah, if you want to be cannon-fodder for those airheads. You, Amy and Luke are the only people with your heads screwed on quite frankly.”

 Neil stared at him. Marvin noticed and snapped “What?! It’s not good to stare at people you know!”

 “Marvin…” he whispered “Marvin Hopper. That’s your name, isn’t it?”

 Marvin stared at him in shock.

 “You used to live in Northings Avenue? At the corner?”

 “Yeah, why? You heard of me going missing or something?”

 “I used to live up the street from you! Neil Dale! You remember?!”

 “Wait, little Neil? The little kid with gaps in his teeth? Is that really you?”

 “Yeah! That’s me! You went missing years ago, after a drugs raid, the case was never closed. They reckoned you had fled the country.”

 “The train picked me up during that raid, that’s why I disappeared. Gosh, man, you were only six at the time. How old are you now?”

 “Not long seventeen now.”

 “Eleven years? It’s been that long? Fuck! I bet my little bro’s all grown up by now, is he?”

 “Became a part of the criminal investigations beau and married about seven years ago I think. Got a couple of kids too.”

 “Really?! Shit, I wish I had been there. I bet it was his girlfriend too, Emily.”

 Luke interrupted “Wait! You two really know each other?”

 “Yeah, but the last time I saw Neil he was about six, had all gaps in his teeth.”

 “I’ve had those fixed.”

 “I can see; did a good job too.”

 Amy and Hayley stood at the brow of the slope. Amy was calling for them to hurry after the others. They chattered idly about what had happened since Marvin had disappeared. Once the group had caught sight with the larger group, they had caught up with each other.

 “Talk about a small world” Luke said.

 “Well, it is now with communication and all.” Hayley quickly added.

 Luke looked at her, bewildered by her comment. This was the first time Derek had realized the time difference. Being from the early eighties, he wouldn’t have had a mobile or a laptop, hell did the Internet exist by then?

 No, that was in the 90s. Even the way he was dressed, and Amy too. Even in Marvin he noticed the fashion change. When did Hayley arrive? The heavy winter coat made it hard to tell, but the bagginess of her jeans; she was wearing dungarees. They were in fashion when he was a kid.

 Suddenly they looked alien to him. The clothes, the hair style, everything. Luke admitted that he should have been forty-seven; Amy could have been older or younger, no; she was younger by a year or two. Marvin should have been thirty-two by now. They all looked the same, as they would’ve when they left. How?

 He found himself stopping and watching everything slowly drift away from him, surely they would notice the time difference or something. The trees seemed to get darker in his view. It felt like he was floating and it looked like he was looking through a shadowy tunnel, like he was going to pass out. Clicking rang in his ears and he could hear his breathing get louder by the second. He was going faint. What if they didn’t notice? What if they left him?

 He titled his head back for a second and watch the flock of birds above his head. It made him stumble back and he let his head drop back down again. If he composed himself before they moved on, then he would be alright.

 Above their heads dark shapes gathered. They resembled birds, a large flock of birds. When they started to swoop down slowly, they quickly changed into something not so familiar. They grew in size and quickly became menacing in nature. They created an odd noise very much like the plucking of violin strings.

 Amy slowed and stopped. Panic filled her face where the colour had drained. She looked up slowly. Hayley had noticed too.

 “Kites!” she hissed.

 Marvin and Luke looked up and started to duck. Hayley pulled Amy into the large shining leaves barely in front of them. Ashley had ducked under the same plant as Luke and Marvin. Neil threw himself under a low-lying tree that made him clear to see from the side but hidden from above.

 Luke looked to see his sister was safe with Hayley. He then looked at Neil, who crawling out of the leaves to the girls. They hastily whispered at him to stop and go back. All he could see was six waving hands but he got the message and ducked back.

 Ashley looked around at the grass behind them. Standing staring at the kites in the middle of the opening was Derek. He was wide-eyed at the bizarre creatures.

 He watched one as it flew straight down like a helicopter. Its wings were shaped like two triangles sticking out of its body, making it a wonder how it stayed in the air. The way they sloped up to its thin baggy neck and tiny slim tail made it clear why it was called a kite. As it landed two skeletal legs lowered to the ground.

 He couldn’t see the head and dreaded to think what the messed up face would look like. But the main shock was the size of it. About the same height as himself at least, and he was tall. It clicked and hummed as it clumsily trotted to Derek.

 Derek watched it as if it couldn’t get to the processing part of his brain. When it got within several meters of him, he started to stumble backwards. More started to hover around him. Their heads looked like this unfortunate purple cross between a goose and a vulture.

 He didn’t notice the others, mesmerized by the first. It wasn’t until one from behind snapped at him did he realize the predicament he was in. Surrounded and isolated, he whimpered and started to sob.

 A scream came from the larger part of the group. The kites were diving down at them. It was the miracle that Derek needed. He could see what Luke meant by staying in groups. He lunged past the first kite without a thought and continued past his friends.

 Knowing it would be stupid to stay in plain sight, the group bolted out of cover. They ran past the trees and down the long sloping trek stamped out by years of wandering feet.

 They ran right into chaos.

 The kites were bombing the group from almost every angle. Some had landed and were snapping at them, preventing escape. The group ducked and dodged. Everyone was screaming. Hands flew and wings beat in a terrifyingly organized rhythm. Neil was under the threat of being pecked and torn but could only think of his eyes. The most stupid thought had entered his brain. A scene from an old movie he’d seen about birds. The image of a man with his eyes gouged out from that film had nested in his head and wasn’t for moving. He couldn’t imagine the damage beaks this size could do.

 Derek saw what his friend couldn’t see with his mind’s eye. Lying on in the dirt was a young boy; he could have only guess was about fourteen, with thick clumps of his face missing. And it wasn’t just his face. It was his neck, his shoulders, his arms, his chest and some of his legs. His hands were missing completely, stumps in their same place. Blood decorated him like a tapestry.

 The creature that delivered the damage was wandering about in a very dazed style. Dark purple blood seeped from a wound on its skull. It had been badly stunned.

 Luke pulled him away from the mess. Another kite landed and started towards them. They raced through the trees into plains.

 The forest just simply cut off and grass replaced it. The carpet of yellow and grey strands, up to their knees, stretched out to another forest. Derek turned his head. The forest arced round into a curve. It was vast, a good half a mile, at least, straight across. But out here they would be exposed and easy to pick off surely.

 Luke gasped and turned again. Derek watched him dash back into the tree line. The hairs on the back of his neck tingled. He was alone, properly this time, and whilst under the siege of beasts from children’s nightmares.

 Surreal monsters.

 He could hear it coming before it actually appeared. Limping heavily was the kite from before. It must have injured its wing, as it crept up to him. Its black beady eyes and the way it walked reminded him of a vampire bat. It didn’t have teeth to tear and rip though. It had a beak to peck and tug his flesh. He would’ve taken the teeth any day right now.

 It was locked on him. It made him wonder if he was its target as Luke had called it. It swayed up to him, unsteady on its feet. How was he supposed to protect himself? Its mouth hung open. If it could fly like this he would stand no chance of out running it. His face felt cold and all he could think of was his family.

 How badly he wanted to see them again. Home and safe. They were probably worried by now, phoning him. Would they go out looking for him? Yes, his mother would go mad with worry and stress. He was never going to see them again. Somewhere deep inside him, he wanted to die now and not prolong this suffering anymore. If only he could say goodbye to his family properly, for the first time in a long time, for the last time, then he would be happy.

 He didn’t get his wish.

 Either of them.

 Lizz stood behind the creature. Her hands gripped a hefty branch. It didn’t notice her.

 Her movements were quick and quiet. A blunt crack and the thud of it dropping to the ground.

 Simple, swift, clean.

 Like most deaths.

 Derek didn’t move. He had no intentions of moving straight away, just in case. Lizz scoffed at him, grabbed his shoulder and shook him. He opened his eyes and stared at her; his expression was pained.

 “Very quick to give up, aren’t you.”

 He looked at her numbly. Eyes shining with tears watched her as she turned and started to walk away from him.

 “If you want to die, go ahead, but stay out of my way.”

 A tear trickled down his cheek. No. He wasn’t going to die yet. This place was going to stretch out his pain as much as it could. It truly was a cruel world here.

 Suddenly he was alone again. The air was quiet asides from the distant screams and clucking from the chaos meters away. Like in the shell.

 Marvin slashed at a kite with his knife. He whipped his hand back and forth. He flicked his wrist and a gash appeared in the beast’s neck. It cooed before dropping to his feet.

 He snapped at Hayley “Are you done now?!”

 She threw another branch full of leaves onto a piled she had created. The mound was now her height and seemed to melt into the trees behind it. From her pocket came a small red lighter. She lit the pile and dragged Marvin away from it.

 They ducked into some large thick bushes and watched it.

 Luke burst back into the assault and ran straight for Amy, who was stamping on a dead kite. The creature’s skull jutted out of its skin in places and the rest sagged against it. He grabbed his sister by the shoulders and swung her around. He pushed her past the now smoldering wood. Ashley shoved Neil after them and accidently kicked more leaves into the flames as he did.

 A young girl, not much older than Hayley, ran screaming past the flames too. She then turned and careered towards the bushes Hayley and Marvin hid in. But before she could reach safety a kite slammed into the back of her head.  It knocked her into the leaves. A long gash ran across her neck, bone deep. Her eyes twitched but she didn’t move. She couldn’t.

 She didn’t have long to live anyway.

 Marvin kneeled beside her, rolled her over and stabbed her chest. She didn’t flinch or scream, but smiled softly, as if thanking him. After a few seconds, she closed her eyes.

 She didn’t have long to live anyway, he reminded himself.

 He pulled her deeper into the leaves and lay her down and turned to Hayley. She nodded. They flew out of their shelter.

 “Fire!” the teenaged girl screamed.

 Everyone seemed to stop before speeding off behind the fire as well.

 Lizz heard the scream. She turned back and ran.

 Derek was walking into the field slowly. Maybe if he stood out here long enough, something would pick him off. Break his neck on impact, skewer him with long claws and eat his body later. He didn’t mind, he didn’t want to be here.

 Lizz spotted him and howled, “Run!”

 He looked at her. Why should he? What did she care if he died or not? She was the one who said to stay out of her way.

 She ploughed straight into him.

 Suddenly, he found himself being dragged behind her, his wrist in her hand. Behind them others ran from the trees. Smoke bellowed out of the canopy. Fire spread, all the bodies inside received a pyre.

  He looked at Lizz, confused “Why are you helping me?!”

 She didn’t look round, nor did she slow “I told you! If you want to die, stay out of my way!”

 He found the sick feeling in him easing. He smiled sadly and silently thanked her.

 The remaining kites took to the air once again. Everyone on the field never stopped running for one second. Ashley never questioned it, if they were running; they were running for a reason. Neil, on the other hand, was having an inward battled. Surely they were safe now, so why was everyone still so scared, and why were they so desperate to get away? Part of him wanted to stop and check.

 He slowed as he turned his head. The tan smoke oozed out of the trees high into the air. Circling around it was the kites, like vultures. They were dwarfed by the smoke and distance. Surely they were safe now?

 The bird-like monsters pressed forwards, away from the cloud. Towards them.

 No. They were not safe.

 He yanked his head away from them and started to run faster. He was now very much behind everyone else and was determined not to be picked off first. Ashley was way ahead now, even catching up with Derek. He was being dragged by the looks of things.

 He passed the twins and Marvin, who was panting heavily. He remembered that he was an asthmatic, how had he survived all this running all this time?

 The kites were catching up on them fast. Never had any of them run so fast in their lives, never had they run for their lives before. Pure fear poured into the three boys, cold and real. It fuelled them with the most primal instinct. Survival.

 Survive.

 Survive in a real hell. Not one of fire but of monsters in a beautiful paradise. Never had something seemed so real.

 The tree line was getting closer, but so were the kites. And they were getting closer faster.

 One swooped down and latched onto a boy in punk clothes. It lifted him high into the air before dropping him. No one looked back, the sick noise was enough.

 They swooped down to continue their vicious aerial attack. Some tripped, fell and were surrounded. Others were taken off and dropped. Amy screamed; Luke pulled her from a kite snapping at her hair. They fell and rolled. Luke had barely stopped when he was yanking his sister from ground again and pulling her along.

 A green coloured kite swooped down at her. Luke swung around and elbowed its neck. It gagged and snapped at him. He grabbed its bottom jaw and twisted it as hard as he could. It flicked its head away from him knocking itself off balance. It landed heavily into the ground. Its neck jutted upwards in an uncomfortable manner.

 He pushed his sibling forward, away from the slain beast.

 Everyone ran and dodged as fast as they could. The ones at the back where first to go. Now they made their way up to the middle section.

 Breath was becoming harder to take in. This was surely the end now. They would never out run these creatures. Not in a million years. Surely the others knew that, surely they have seen others being taken before. They must have known this place was a death trap.

 What have they done, leading them to the small field?

 Neil closed his eyes. He could hear the beat of the leathery wings. Yes, it would take him away and drop him. He hoped it would break his neck during the fall, rather than be torn apart. He felt very suddenly cold. No, he didn’t want to die. But what human in their sane mind would want to die? But when measuring it to this hell, would death really be that bad? Something unknown to something known and hellish. His body didn’t make any attempt to stop though; it certainly wanted to live, even if his mind was voting for death.

 But death didn’t come.

 Nor did the claws in his shoulders, or the feeling of being lifted.

 He didn’t stop though. He couldn’t. His body screamed, “Survive!” So that’s what he did.

 The kites suddenly gave up chase. It looked like they had hit an invisible wall. It was almost comical, but no one would have laughed if they saw.

 They had made it. Just.

 The trees came swiftly you replace them. No one braced themselves and the onslaught of the strong branches and sharp leaves were unforgiving. The forest was taking revenge on their burning comrades.

 They pressed onward regardless of their wounds. The instinct to flee, to survive was too great for them to stop yet. They ran deeper and deeper into the forest, blood leaving a trail to follow. They stamped through the leaves and clawed through the twigs.

 Then they slowed. The adrenaline drained from them. The trees thinned in number and grew larger. The floor was carpeted with leaves.

 In the center of a particularly large opening was a rock formation. Black and shining with the wet of rain, it jutted out of the ground, both out of place and perfectly set. The trees dwarfed it, but it would be the perfect vantage point. Moss grew dark green crawling up the darker surface, little tendrils reaching far beyond the teenagers’ heights.

 They circled it aimlessly, many stopping quickly to catch their breath. They would be safe here for now, maybe even through the night. Ashley was the only one not completely panting. He was red in the face though. His strawberry blonde hair clung to his skin, as did his shirt.

 Derek was shaking with exhaustion. He needed rest desperately,       verging on tears. Lizz was stood beside him. She was still clinging to his wrist; it was amazing she had any strength in her arms left.

 “You can let go of my hand now…” Derek said meekly. He was turning blue in the face, and parts of his skin didn’t know whether to be hot or cold, particularly his cheeks. The air did not help. It was damp, thick with water. It had rained here recently, and by the look of the dark clouds form above it would to again soon.

 The once warm air was turning to a chill. The scattered remaining children were nearly halved in number and they had lost their two longest standing residents. The twins had been dropped. But the latest arrivals had all survived.


	4. Chapter 4

 The sky had opened. Rain poured down on them as they sheltered under rock formation. The water trickled down the lumpy faces of black. It didn’t shelter them much, but it was better than just standing out in the rain, many without coats.

 Hayley had pulled up her hood. The fur trim was soaked and dripping, the droplets running down her cheeks and off her chin. The noise was steady and oddly comforting. A subtle reminder of how unsafe this world really was. They could do little more than wait it out.

 Thankfully for the lookouts there was a tree growing next to the formation, the roots and moss mating together into an almost seamless join. The leaves, which were thick and plentiful, hung other them and sheltered them.

 Derek had fallen asleep. His lack of exercise showed most through his chubby stomach. He was not used to running at all; part of him had wondered if he ever got back, should he take up jogging.

 Then he had to remind himself, he was not going home.

 No one here got home, ever.

 Lizz had taken to sitting with him and his friends. They were bewildered with sudden change in interest with them. Even Luke was surprised, which was probably more shocking. As Marvin had put it “He was not easily impressed.”

 The hours had ticked by and Derek was starting to come back to reality. Everyone was sat, huddled together almost, in silence. Derek opened his eyes and looked around at them. He saw the rain and flinched as a large, cold drop hit his knee.

 “Nice to see you awake. What’s it like in zombie-land?” Lizz asked mockingly.

 “Not much better than here by the looks of things.”

 “Dream about anything nice, Derek?” Amy asked. She smiled sweetly.

 “No.” her smile faded “I dreamt about home, it just makes it harder to wake up.”

 He felt sick. He wanted to be home so badly it left him drained and empty. He looked at Luke curiously “Do you ever wonder if there is a way back? Or how we even got here? Surely someone would notice, right?”

 “Hard to say. I’ve never heard of anyone going back, but what’s to say there hasn’t been someone who’s made it back. I know many who’ve tried, but the Train goes as fast as it comes, so it might be impossible to go home that way. The only thing I can think of is if the Train comes back for you.”

 “But surely someone would notice though! Think about it, surely there isn’t that many people who go missing that goes unnoticed. Families must notice.” he trailed off. But he wasn’t really thinking about that, he was thinking of his family. They have to have noticed by now. Surely they must have noticed.

 “About 210,000 people are reported to go missing every year though, and that’s the amount that are reported, there could be more. I hear somewhere that it could be as many as 270,000 because of the unreported ones. What if we’re among them unreported ones?” Hayley imputed.

 “And 16,000 to 20,000 are never to be found.” Marvin added.

 “So, what you’re suggesting that we might not be found, that some of those people come here?” Lizz asked, frowning at the idea, “That might be the case. But surely some of us are noticed missing. We can’t all be unreported, unless our lives vanish altogether. And I wouldn’t be surprised if that happens.”

 Neil looked at Marvin “That’s not it. We may never be found, but I remember Marvin going missing and there being a large man hunt for him and the others in that drugs bust. And look, he remembers me.”

 Marvin nodded “Well, that’s scratches that theory, but what about what this world is? Surely, someone would have discovered it sooner.”

 “With technology what is today, I wouldn’t be surprised if they have and are keeping quiet.” Ashley said, “I mean, think about it. What about things like Area 51 and Roswell and stuff like that? They can’t have let something like this out, because it affects anyone and everyone. At one point or another at least.”

 “Don’t you think that if they have discovered us by now, that they would have last least tried to contact or save us?”

 “They might have, but what if they can’t get through or something. They might be trying hard.”

 “I don’t think they know we’re here.” Hayley interrupted.

 “And why not?” Ashley snapped.

 “Have you heard of the theory of a parallel world?” everyone became silent. Hayley had never really expressed what she had thought of this place before. She had never raised her voice or cried. She had been completely impassive before now.

 “This world couldn’t have always been here. And the Train, it would take an idiot to tell you that trains have been around forever, so it must have come around when trains first came into existence.”

 “The twins remember that the train looked like the one that took them to London once. And they described it differently to one I saw. And I bet the one you saw was different to the one I saw.” Marvin agreed, “So there must be some form of evolution involved somewhere.”

 “But surely it has been around as long as humans?” Amy was getting flustered with the thought of it.

 “Maybe. It could have been here since the beginning of time, and now it has a purpose, we just don’t know. But I think that it is, it was created because of the sins of humans. The more humans, the more the whole system goes to wrong, right? What if this is nature’s sick way of sorting us out?”

 “But what about those who get ignored? Those who do unthinkable things, like child murder and rape?” Marvin asked. He was getting angry, and was starting to rock his knee up and down.

 “What if it’s too late by then? Most people who do those levels of things are adult. What if we have a chance to change?”

 Silence fell on the group. It made sense. None of them were younger than ten and none were above twenty-five. So, that could be the answer. Anything they have done before ten was justified by mimicking others or not really having an understanding of what they are doing. By the time they are older, it would be too late.

 The possibilities added up. It could have been here since the beginning of time, just waiting out a purpose. It could be have been created from the pain of those who were hurt by others unjustly. The ideas were as endless as the monsters it seemed.

 Lizz looked around at everyone “Knowing what’s happening around here and how it came about won’t help us get home though. So we might as well drop this and move on.” She stood and turned to Luke “Anywhere we can shelter for a while nearby?”

 “The nearest place that doesn’t rain all the time? Well, that would about a day’s walk deeper into the forest. It’s a bit out in the open, but if we have a watch sat out, it should be safe enough.”

 They stood and everyone followed. For once Luke was the first to lead the way, but slowly he fell to the back once again. He was more comfortable here. He explained to the others that some monsters would try and pick them off one by one from the back; if you can notice them in time then you had a chance. He preferred to have the job done by someone vigilant.

 For the most part Lizz moved throughout the group a lot, checking everyone. Once or twice she came close to the back. This was the first time she took any interest in them properly.

 It was easy to tell why.

 Derek stood firm with her scolding, and was holding firm with the coldness too, which had seeped into his body from the rain. They had left the rain ages ago, but he still hadn’t dried. Lizz was wearing a leather jacket, so the rain had dripped off her quickly. He was shivering, she must have taken it for fear because she had been very light on him compared to others.

 They travelled for a good couple of hours before they came to a river. The water was roaring as it burst over the stones that jutted out from below it. It was fast, too fast to cross, but the water, which splashed over the rock, was pure. Drinkable and refreshing.

 They rested here as well. The banks were too muddy and weathered to sit on, but one by one they came down to drink. Their little group sat near a miniature waterfall, which was more of a large spray over some shape rocks.

 “Hey Luke, what did you mean by ‘the nearest place that doesn’t rain all the time’? This place can’t be big enough to have more than one weather system, surely.” Neil asked.

 “And monsters like that don’t exist in reality. Really, you question anything here after all you’ve seen?”

 He ducked his head, embarrassed. He was right though, he shouldn’t really question it “But everything else about this place seems normal asides from them though.”

 “Nothing is normal here. The shells are the most obvious ones but the weather is another. For the most part it is nice and warm, but certain areas have set weather systems. That place we were at is rain; there is a place several miles away from here that has snow. Near the beach is heat and the fields are wind, hence the kites. There are more too.”

 “Does the sun not set here either?” asked Ashley.

 “It does, but it takes a couple of days by normal time. It’s probably been a day at home compared to here where half a day isn’t even over. It will set though; maybe by the time we get to where we’re going it will be dark.”

 “Will it be safe to rest at night? With all the monsters out and about I mean.”

 “Only with several watches on the lookout. It should be safe with them watching out for us as we rest.”

 They sat in silence for a while. The silence was welcomed. It was odd how they had suddenly come to like the silence. Maybe because it meant nothing was coming and nothing there but themselves. Maybe it was the peacefulness of it. This world was so calming away from the beasts who called it home. Another reason it was so twisted and cruel.

 Ashley looked at Marvin and then at Neil. It was amazing how they had known each other so long ago and then meet again under such otherworldly circumstances. It had been puzzling him badly when something else hit his mind.

 He looked round at the others and wondered if any of them weren’t from Manchester. Most of them had a Manchurian accent as far as he could tell. Not one spoke in a language that wasn’t English. It didn’t make sense.

 “Luke?”

 He looked up “Hmm?”

 “Has there been anyone from a country outside the UK here that you know of?”

 Luke frowned. He seemed to be thinking through everyone he had met when he looked up at Ashley again and replied “No. No one far outside Manchester.”

 Realization appeared along his face “So, you think that the Train only works in the Manchester area, but what about the rest of England? It’s bad enough that London thinks we’re the scum of the Earth, now some supernatural force thinks the same thing. Great!”

 “But, what if there were others?” Hayley asked.

 They looked at her “Like more than one Train?”

 “Yeah. What if there were thousands of them? All over the world, taking people to different worlds, similar to this one, but not the same.”

 “Why not just mix us together?” Derek asked.

 “Who knows? Different places have different problems probably. Maybe certain people can’t be placed anywhere else because they might make it harder to kill them off. If that makes sense of course, I mean, it might be just how things work. There are many things we don’t know about this world and how it works.”

 “Yeah, but it’s hard to accept, that there are more people than we have ever imagined coming to these worlds. Imagine, more Trains collecting people all over the world and dropping them off, all over the world, non-stop. It’s… terrifying.”

 Now the silent was thick and unbearable. The whole group had heard the conversation, so there was no comfort. The air became heavy and hard to breath in. Everyone felt sick. None of them had ever really considered the scale of the situation, that there might be more people out there. Being taken in, not knowing their fate.

 It was barely acceptable with just them.

 The tension became brittle. Lizz felt it and concluded it was time to move, the walk would hopefully drain the feeling away.

 The group set out again. They followed the river down a slope; it broke off at one point into a sharp incline and slivered down to a floor covered in foliage. The tall thick blades of grass towered above them. They skidded slowly down the steep side and continued walking into the growth.

 The small groups had suddenly been broken up and everyone was walking randomly through the grass. Ashley jumped down the slope and fell into Neil, who was picking himself up from slipping over. They tumbled to the ground loudly.

 Luke leaned over the ledge and snapped at them “Shut it! There are hedgehogs in this area.”

 “What are they?”

 “You’ll find out if you’re not careful. In fact, Ashley, you can climb trees well, right?”

 “Yeah.”

 “Then climb up one of those trees and keep look out.” He pointed to the tall pale trunks behind them. Ashley stood.

 “I’ll come with you.” Neil says.

 They crawled up the branches quickly and swiftly like monkeys. They had a perfect view of everyone from above. The dark leaves far above their head made it difficult to climb higher to see more, but the trees were close enough together to climb from one to another.

 It appeared that there were some parts of this place that were merciful.

 Hayley weaved through the tufts of grass, hands in pockets. She still felt sick at the thought of there being more than one Train. Her face felt cold against the humid air and she was struggling to focus.

 Two girls, both taller than her, appeared behind her. They quickly walked up to her. The tallest had dark curly hair and the smaller one had strawberry blonde hair. They went either side of her.

 “You know, you’re a problem.” The dark haired girl purred “And we don’t like problems, do we Sam?”

 “No, we don’t.” Sam was chubby and looked almost comical trying to look mean “We like to sort them out before it is too late. Gemma here did karate before she came here, didn’t you. She knows how to handle herself.”

 Hayley didn’t flinch at their near mocking tone “So what, did you karate someone to death? And if I’m that much of a problem, then why don’t you leave me alone?”

 She continued walking past them. They glared at her before stopping her. Gemma grabbed her shoulder and spun her around to face them. She watched them through her tawny eyes without a hint of emotion.

 “You think you’re so important because you’ve been here longer, huh? Well let me tell you, one way or another, we will outlive you. They’ll come for you eventually! You’re the only one of your group that isn’t dead; you’ll be made a target and ripped into shreds!”

 Hayley just stared at them; who were they to decide whether the monsters will make her a target. They probably just wanted their own survival, and to get rid of her would be put the odds more in their favor.

 What an illusion!

 They just stood glaring at her, waiting to get her reaction. They would have waited a while had Ashley not gasped so loudly.

 The boys had been watching the one-sided argument from the branches above them when a black mist caught their eye. It looked like mist. The domed rectangle stretched deep into the trees ahead and the hill behind.

 The void-like darkness moved and swayed like smoke when a very clear platform appeared brightly to one side. Light rain started to fall inside the blackness and beside the platform was a long trail of tracks. He had seen this before. They all had.

 The Train exploded so quickly into the void is almost seemed to appear out of nowhere. Ashley could feel a sickly wave fall over him. Neil climbed onto the branch beside him and he could see his pale eyes were black, reflecting the darkness they watched. Everything seemed to slow around them. The doors opened and eight teenagers poured out of it.

 They looked around when the Train charged away again. The void disappeared and the new group snapped out of their trance. They looked around at their new surroundings, letting what had happened sink in. Just like they had.

 Screams erupted from the four girls, three of whom huddled together. They swung about looking at each other and the trees above. A coffee coloured lad with thick tufts of hair and glasses spotted Ashley and Neil in the trees.

 “Hey!” he shouted “Hey! Who are you?! Where are we?!” he waved at them. The duo stared down at him in horror. They signaled for him to be quiet.

 He was too late. From the foliage behind them came three brown furry creatures with spines covering their backs. About the size of a Labrador, they towered over the four more, which appeared behind them. They snarled at the teens.

“Run!” screeched Hayley, who could see them through a gap in the tall grass.

 That word alone was enough to spread chaos.

 The two girls behind her shoved her away as they ran. Hayley leapt towards the trees Ashley and Neil hid in. She climbed up about halfway when she stopped. She looked up the boys.

 “Hedgehogs! The big ones are females! They can climb trees, we have to out run them!” she hopped down and ran through the bushes. Luke and Amy were very close behind her.

 The newest arrivals watched the beasts in horror as they scrambled towards them. The young man with the glasses ran to the trees behind them. He jumped up at the first branch and pulled himself up. Neil and Ashley grappled for his hands when he leapt to the next branch. His feet couldn’t grip the bark under them.

 One of the hedgehogs ran for the tree and started to climb up the trunk, much like a squirrel. Her prey scrambled, Neil and Ashley pulling desperately. His foot finally caught purchase before it loosened again. He kicked the animal in the face and it fell back down to the ground. It turned and hissed at them.

 Everyone was running this way and that as the hedgehogs bellowed out of the grass like ants. They bolted after the teens, chased them, yipping and snarling as they went.

 One of the new girls screamed as three of the little monsters bit into her and pulled. She screeched and howled in pain, struggling to get free from them. They were faster than her. It was too late.

 One latched onto neck and ripped the skin free from the muscle underneath. It then closed its jaws around her jugular and yanked at it. Her screaming ceased as she watched the blood pour over her shoulder and pool under her back. She shook violently, rasping in each and every last breath.

 They left her and moved on. She looked up at them and whimpered at her friend “Felix… Felix please…” he reached his arm for her, and copied. He whispered “Goodbye.” To her before letting his arm drop and looking away.

 Ashley watched him, he and girl looked alike. Maybe they were related. The female who had attacked them was starting to climb again. She was bloodied around the nose and angry.

 Felix gritted his teeth and leapt down from the branch he was perched on. His feet once again collided with the animal and they landed in a heap on the ground. The other two boys leapt down too. Felix was panting on the ground, sobbing. He wiped his eyes and stood shakily.

 “That’s for Courtney.” He whispered, his voice smooth and warm, deep. His voice would have been beautiful under other circumstances. He looked at his saviors, tears still falling down his cheeks.

 Lizz ran through the bushes and almost plowed into him. She was red in the face from running.

 “Where’s Derek?”

 “Marvin took him. He was nearly sick when he saw some kid’s thigh being ripped apart. I take it we have newcomers.” She gestured to Felix.

 “Where are we?” he asked.

 “In a simple word: hell.”

 He flinched. Lizz looked at the others before snapping back to the grass “We better get outta here.”

 They ran through the green blades after Lizz. She seemed to know the way through. They dodged the hedgehogs and other teens as they rushed through. Lizz stamped on as many as of the little heads as she could then she ran.

 They bulldozed through a wall of grass into an opening surrounded by high cliffs. People were already at the top and helping those who were climbing. Luke was ordering everyone around him as he helped pull Derek up. A shaking Amy was clutching at Hayley who was petting her hair. She had blood on her shoulder.

 Marvin was shouting at this young lad he was pulling up. He looked up and pointed at the female beside them. It skidded around and lunged at them, her fangs bared. Lizz pulled out a small switchblade and slashed it at its neck.

 Brown coloured blood spat out from the wound. It fell against her, knocking her back into Ashley, who kept her balanced. She flung the creature off her and looked, panicked, at Ashley. They looked at the cliff, which Neil and Felix where already trying to scale.

 They scrambled up the rocks, watching other doing the same, wondering if their faces resembled the fear and horror etched into the others. The climb was hard and slow. Painstakingly so.

 Marvin grabbed Felix’s hand and pulled him up. He was panting with the amount of people he had dragged up. He pressed Felix away when he was fully up and started pulling Lizz up. The newest arrival reached down for Neil, as Ashley was already pulling himself up.

 They had barely gotten a chance to catch their breath when a hedgehog ran up to the cliff and leapt onto the muddy surface, climbing the rock to them. It opened its mouth and released a wild screech. Luke ran to where it would come up and called for Marvin. He replied by throwing his knife over. He caught it and stabbed the animal in the forehead when it came up.

 Its eyes slid shut as it slid off the blade.

 Everyone was starting to gather finally. Asides from the newest arrivals, almost everyone had survived. Felix was now the sole survivor of his little group of eight.

 The last few people were now scrambling for the cliff. The hedgehogs had now started to retreat. They wanted the Train’s latest cargo; anything else was just extra.

 There were one or two more people finally climbing over the edge when Sam and Gemma reappeared from the grass. They were running from a final female hedgehog. They leapt for the rocks and scrambled upwards, trying desperately to get away from the beast.

 Gemma launched herself over the ledge and scrambled away from Sam. She had just reached the ledge when their pursuer pulled her back down. She cried out, her chubby fingers clinging to the rock.

 Hayley looked from Sam to Gemma, who was sobbing on the grass growing close to the cliff. She bolted to Sam’s hand. Grabbing the pink limb, she pulled as hard as she could, trying desperately to keep her alive.

 Sam’s eyes were pale with fright and the now hollow pupils were locked on her face. She was no longer screaming, but whimpering something incoherent to her.

 Over and over again.

 The hedgehog shook its head furiously. Sam slipped backwards slightly, her other chubby hand reached up and grabbed the rock face under her tummy. She tried to pull herself up, but was yanked back down by the monster. Her face had turned white with fear and she looked Hayley square in the face again.

 Hayley watched as the hand she gripped slipped steadily from her fingers. Slowly, so slowly, and Sam knew it. Tears streamed down her round cheeks as she watched her life slip away

 Felt it slip away.

 “I’m sorry…”

 She was gone. Gone with her words lost into oblivion. She was sorry, but it was too late in this world for her to repent.

 Hayley watched numbly as the last of the monster fled back into their home. Her cheeks became pale, and her eyes lost their focus.

 Gone was the saving courage.

 Nothing to replace it.

 Silence swamped them as they looked on. She had become a target, but that didn’t change the awful, nameless feeling that pressed down on them. Loss? Bereavement? Guilt? No. Not for Sam at least.

 Hayley’s hands curled into themselves and she stood. Her face was empty, a doll not a human. A painted doll.

 As dead as the girl she couldn’t save.


	5. Chapter 5

 The next few hours trailed on painfully. The sky had painted itself orange and the sun had lost its height. Everyone was walking quietly, no one having the courage to speak. Hayley was now walking considerably farther back than before, to the point where everyone now walked slowly to keep an eye on her. She would be an easy picking.

 “I would’ve had my dinner by now.” Derek blurted out. He had become sick of the silence and had taken to thinking about food when his thought turned verbal. Apparently his body was also sick of the silence.

 “Don’t bet on it. There’s no food here. Thank God we don’t get hungry.” Luke replied. He looked tired, suddenly worn out by everything.

 “Never get hungry? Really…? Just really…” he looked at him with disbelief “Nothing’s impossible here is it?”

 “Never really tested it but probably.” He shrugged.

 Felix had followed Ashley and Neil after they had saved him. He was only picked up two days after them and had asked about why it was so important. They had to explain everything they knew about this world to him. He had been very quiet letting it sink in.

 He turned and looked at Hayley. He looked back at the others, letting them get farther and farther away before turning to face Hayley, who was now beside him. They walked in silence for a while. His adjusted his glasses before speaking.

 “It wasn’t your fault you know. She was going to die anyway wasn’t she? A ‘target’, right?” he tried to comfort her guilt.

 But it didn’t comfort her. How could he possibly understand that terror? The fear of death. He escaped with his life, why did she have to suffer for that, that price? She wasn’t bad, not really, just mindless.

 Just a dumb, fat idiot.

 It didn’t comfort her.

 It fuelled something deep in the pit of her stomach, flowing up to her chest, her heart. It set them aflame.

 She turned to him sharply and howled, “How could you possibly understand?”

 Everyone heard the loud squeal. Her eyes had changed from green to a steely-grey and her pupil focused on his intently. She looked wild.

 “She wasn’t the target! She wasn’t a target! Her time couldn’t have been up! She had done nothing! She was just a dumb, silly little girl! What crime is that?! How could you understand the kind of fear she had!? Knowing death had her already! She didn’t deserve that!”

 She grabbed hold of his arm and squeezed, throwing her rage into her grip.

 “They wanted you! You and everyone on that bloody train! Why do you live on while she died?! What made your life more important than her’s!? She didn’t deserve this! She didn’t deserve this. She didn’t deserve this…”

 She slumped to the ground, her hand slipping from his arm as she went. Why did this happen? Why did people die when others lived? It just didn’t seem right. But when was anything right with the world, this world. This hell.

 He took her shoulders and pulled her up to her feet. She came without fuss or struggle and watched him, as he looked square in the eye. She didn’t try to look away, her own will having become so weak.

 He didn’t blink as he spoke to her “Look, I don’t really understand this place and why it’s here, maybe we’re not supposed to, but I will not stand here and act like the problem. The problem is this place, these monsters. I don’t think the person who died would change the fact that someone died. I just lost my sister, the only person I really care about; so don’t act like the victim in this. We’re all here for a reason, we have all lost someone, so don’t act innocent.”

 She was sent into tears now.

 He turned to see the others looking at them, their faces a painting of disgust and sympathy. They knew her longer, they probably could empathies with her more. Clearly he had crossed some kind of line.

 He looked back at her.

 “I’m sorry.” But she kept crying. He took her shoulder and walked her towards the group. Amy walked up to her and wrapped her arms around her, before guiding her away.

 Everyone glared at him, before turning and walking away slowly. He suddenly felt really alone. Alone in a hell on earth was not a situation he particularly liked being in. He watched their backs as they walked away from him. He wondered if he should even bother following. He didn’t look away from them, but somehow the forest seemed to press down on him.

 He stood perfectly still. The noise of their footsteps echoed around him.

  _Why did she react that way? What was so important about that girl?_ He looked at her. That girl, Sam, wasn’t important at all. But something connected to how she died was.

 He took one step forward. What was he going to fix by telling her that?

 Telling her what?

 He took another and continued after them.

 Hours passed without rest. Everyone was starting to get tired, the low sun beckoning sleep. The air was breathlessly cold about them and light was falling with its source. Night will be quick to follow.

 Derek looked at Luke, who smiled and nodded. They were finally here. They could rest finally. The trees spread out from the path and circulated three connected areas. No grass grew from the grey dirt below their feet; it looked barren and dead compared the previously foliage as far as the eye could see. Although that wasn’t terribly far.

 They spread out with the trees and sat down in their little groups. Felix looked around him; he would not be welcome in any of them more than likely. He found himself walking to a tree near the edge of one of the openings. He looked around at everyone one last time and started climbing it. He found himself the largest branch and sat in the nook of it.

 He would probably fall from it in his sleep, but if he were lucky, he would be killed instantly. It would better than living in this hell.

 He looked down at the group he had been following. He was actually looking at Hayley, who had long stopped crying and was now just sitting with dead eyes again. He hated that look so much, the look his sister had for so many years.

 Her eyes were truly dead now.

 He looked away, not able to stand watching her anymore.

 Everyone was sat down and talking together quietly. The evening had fallen and now they just waited for sleep to take them. Lizz was already laid down on her side. Derek was whispering to Neil about the day after and Ashley was asleep, slumped again a felled log.

 Amy was asking Hayley if she all right, fruitlessly, and Luke had to tell her to stop and leave their friend to come round in her own time.

 Everyone settled for a while. It became quiet and everyone was drifting off.

 Hayley sat, still unmoved, by Amy who was asleep. Gemma walked over to her and crossed her arms over her chest and whispered to Hayley “Come on, we need to talk.”

 Hayley didn’t seem to notice her. She lost her temper and went to grab her arm when Hayley stood. She looked down at her and replied quietly “Let’s go then.”

 They walked away from everyone, as not to wake them. Gemma looked Hayley up and down, she looked weak and tired, sickly almost. The air was full of pressure, ready to explode when she spoke.

 “What? You think you have a right to act all sad because Sam died? Well, let me tell you, bitch, that’s not how it works here. She was my friend, not your’s.” Hayley didn’t even seem to be taking in her words. It annoyed her “I bet this is what you were planning from the beginning! To kill her off and get pity from the others. Lizz is a lot weaker than everyone thinks. She can’t think ahead of her own arm and needs Luke to tell her everything, and she calls herself a leader, pathetic!

 “People like you should just become targets and die, leave us all. You cause problem after problem. I bet you’re the reason everyone on your Train died!” Hayley flinched “Hah! And you know it too! They were killed because you were the target I bet. Bad things follow you, and that’s why Sam is dead. That stupid bitch would have died anyway, but she would have lived longer if you didn’t exist!

 “You should have died! The weak die! The weak are picked off and the strong survive.”

 Hayley clenched her fists “Then why are you alive?”

 “What was that, you little bitch?!” she snapped back.

 “If the weak die, then why are you alive?! You know I’ll live, so you try to get rid of me to better your own chances! If I’m that weak, why is it that I was the one who grabbed your friend’s hand?! Why did I try to save her, when you stood back and watched?!”

 The smaller girl stepped forward and screamed into her face “I reckon she was here because of your sins, not her own! She was too mindless to have done anything on herself! She was here because of you! Here because of you! She paid the price for someone else’s crimes! She was punished for nothing! Nothing!”

 Everyone had heard the shouting and woken up. They stared at them, watching the argument. Felix was the one to raise the alarm though.

 “Monster!” he shouted and pointed to behind the girls.

 Panic rose at the horrible beast behind them.

 The monster behind them was possibly the worse manifestation of evil to step forth from this world yet.

 It was small and built like a child. A dark navy raincoat covered its body, hood up with no face underneath. Two pale, skinny knees appeared from under the large garment and disappeared into two yellow wellingtons. It looked human. Completely human except for the thick brown fur that came from the sleeves. The long tufts didn’t hide the five dark brown talons falling from them.

 They froze at the sight of it. It didn’t look real. It looked human. But the surreal feeling of reality and fear poisoned the hope of a nightmarish illusion. It looked human.

 It looked human!

 Gemma took a step back and it lifted its head. There was no face, but a shiny black canvas with two white orbs where eyes should have been.

 It wasn’t human.

 It lunged at the two girls. Hayley didn’t have a chance to move when it tore past her, catching her cheek on the way. Gemma stumbled and fell flat on her back. She screamed as it stopped, so unreal in its movement, lifted its arm above its head and went to slam down.

 Luke stood and ran towards it “Hey!”

 Hayley pulled the lighter from her pocket, instinctively following what she had learned. But it’s a boss. She ignited the flame and pressed it against the beasts shoulder. It’s a boss.

 It turned and grabbed her hand. Hayley stuttered at it and it guided her backwards slowly.

 Bosses don’t act the same as other monsters.

 Never the same.

 They are the evil of humans in a concentrated form.

 She looked at its face, the reflection of her face. It held in her gaze for a while, until its head was jarred forward. Felix had grabbed a fair sized rock and had slammed it into the back of the monsters head.

 “A Raincoat! Run!” Someone shouted and chaos erupted. Everyone was running aimlessly to get away, grabbing friends’ hands and trying to find a way to escape. But every time someone went to the tree line, they stopped suddenly, as if there was a barrier there to stop them.

 Felix grabbed hold of Hayley and pulled her back to the group.

 “What the hell’s going on?!” he shouted.

 They looked around them, as if they would find an exit by doing so “It’s the Raincoat’s Playground.”

 “Playground?”

 “Because they look like children, we called this barrier around them their Playground. It’s a barrier that follows them. Damn it! Why didn’t anyone notice it before?”

 Neil turned to him “Wait! The kites didn’t follow us after we hit the trees, they just stopped.”

 “That’s about right, other creatures can’t enter or leave the barrier either. I can’t believe it, it must have been following us this whole time, someone should’ve noticed! It could be possible that it has been following us since the beginning, but held back when the other creatures appeared.”

 “Wait, that screeching noise from back when we first arrived was that thing?”

 “Not a pleasant creature is it.”

 The Raincoat was watching them, and particularly Hayley. Lizz noticed this. That was it.

 Hayley was a target.

 Her life was going to end.

 But, somehow, Lizz couldn’t bring herself to push Hayley forward, offer her up like she had done so many others. This cowering girl, someone so quiet, who had been through everything with them, who would’ve sacrificed herself for their sake.

 She hadn’t done a single thing untoward to anyone here. She was hated and loved for it. She didn’t deserve to die.

 And she wasn’t going to.

 Gemma watched as the monster gorged her chest out, crying the whole time. She didn’t have a quick death either. It didn’t finish her off before it ran to another teenager and started to rip him apart.

 It had a target, but this was its realm, and it could kill as many as it wanted if it so desired. They were the appetizers and Hayley was the main course.

 Ashley looked at a tree, then at the others “Could we climb out of here?!”

 “I don’t know, no one has ever tried.”

 He grabbed Amy’s arm and pulled her away “No time like the present!”

 Felix pushed Hayley after them. Luke looked at the others. Derek was shouting at the last remaining girl with them “Lizz! Go after them!”

 “No! I’ve stood as a leader for them, even if it’s just a front, I’ll die as a leader for them!”

 “Lizz, go!” Luke snapped.

 She turned to argue but he stopped her “I need someone to protect Amy if they can get out of here! You can do that! I’m leaving her to you! Protect my sister!”

 She looked at the others; they nodded in agreement. Her eyes stung and she found herself nodding back. They knew their fate, but they faced it. Not with fear, but acceptance. She wished them the best in her head, in her heart.

 She wanted them to live.

 The Raincoat spotted the girls running to the tree, which overhung the tree line. It looked around at everyone else, and then started to run for the thick trunk.

 Marvin jumped in front of it, and pressed his knife again its chest. It pressed against the blade, still trying to run forward. Marvin found himself being pushed back easily. His feet dragged the dirt up as they pressed into the ground.

 Neil ran around the back of the creature and grabbed it around the stomach, pulling it back. Luke grabbed one arm; Derek grabbed the other. They pulled and pushed it as hard they could, and for a few split seconds they were overpowering it, forcing it to a halt.

 Marvin grinned, they were going to stop it; the others were going to escape.

 Ashley had already noticed and was pointing to them. Everyone up the trees was cheering, shouting encouragement. The odds had turned in their favor. They were going to escape for once.

 They could do it!

 They could overcome…

 The creature looked up at Hayley, its shiny face, once again, reflecting hers. This was the first time it had ever done this; most creatures changed their targets if one was becoming too hard or even impossible to obtain. Even for a boss.

 But suddenly it clicked.

 Tears came to her eyes and fell down her cheeks, as she whispered “No”

 It looked at Marvin, his smirk. Everything became silent. Slow. Felix noticed Hayley’s tear, and leaned down to ask her what was wrong. Amy noticed this, and her hand reached for the girl’s back. Ashley and Lizz watched her as she tripped her head back slowly and howled.

 “No!”

 The Raincoat mimicked her and howled such an unearthly roar that sent shivers down everyone’s back. From its chest a black jet of liquid sprayed into Marvin’s face. He screamed at the burning pain. He stumbled away, falling to the side, dropping his knife. He couldn’t see, but desperately tried to whip the tar like liquid away from his eyes. It spread on his hands and arms.

 He clawed at himself hopelessly. The others watched in despair. The creature lurched forward and flung Derek and Luke from its arms. Neil found his feet off the floor, then his whole body and he was grabbed and thrown over the monsters shoulder.

 It crouched low and catapulted at the tree.

 Why?

 The second it hit the bark everything sped up again. The tree jolted before slowly falling down. It wasn’t helped by the Raincoat power drilling its way through it. It slipped through the air with a loud creak before crashing. Everyone on the branches were thrown off.

 Hayley landed next to Marvin, whose body was covered by the black acidic tar. His body was curled in excruciating pain. His back was arched off the floor, his hands hanging above him, hands drawn tense like claws. He looked like a burns victim where the blackness covered. His coffee coloured legs still looked plump and warm compared the horror his torso had become.

 He was dead.

 Dead.

 Because of her.

 Why?

 Why…

 The tears poured down her cheeks.

 Amy crawled from under the branches. Her brother was lying against the barrier. He was going to be trampled by everyone scrambling around him, trying desperately to get out.

 She started crawling to him. She managed to avoid the majority of people, but got a few kicks on the way. Once she reached him, she grabbed his arm and dragged him out. Lizz ran up to them and helped pull him away from the gathering crowd.

 She wiped her cheek causing blood to brush across her face. They dragged him to a safer place. Ashley was already tending to Neil, who was lucky enough to land on softer dirt, although he was in considerable pain.

 Lizz looked up at Derek who was dragging himself away from the other side of the barrier. His leg was broken at the thigh.

 Felix pushed a branch off himself and found to his horror that the Raincoat stood between him and Hayley. She was sat facing it, her face white. Everyone was slowly stopping and watched as it took a step forward, causing her to fall backwards.

 It was walking very slowly to her, causing her to move, farther and farther back. Eventually she turned around and crawled as fast as she could away from it. She then climbed to her feet, turned around again and stared at the beast. Everyone watched as she came to edge of the barrier. Behind her was a large, dark empty area, but the barrier blocked any escape.

 Hayley whimpered at the monster. She would stand no chance of escape with it this close. She sobbed openly, her hands pressed against the invisible shield. It watched her intently. She looked at it, the reflection still there.

 Slowly she turned to face it directly. Her face was mirrored in the darkness.

 “Why…?”

 Why indeed? Because at that second the reason for the shiny mirror surface of its face finally made sense. She looked at it, still crying, she was the one wanting to punish. She shouldn’t have been there. The memories of the Train flowed in her head once again.

 There had been a murder. Her ‘friends’ had done it and she had been caught up with them when they passed her on the way home from work. They had grabbed her hand and ran. They had gotten to a back alley, behind the shops where she had worked, when they had stopped. She had loved that job.

 She had asked them what was wrong; gosh, their faces seemed blurred in her mind. They had told her, about the murder. Battered a poor man to death, for protecting his daughter.

 For what?

 For nothing!

 They had been harassing the young girl when he had come out and told them to get lost. He had been the one to lose.

 The first thing that came to her was fear, then the police; she had to get away so she could call the police. Then the alley had gotten dark and the Train appeared. How did she remember that far and why did she not remember much after it? That’s right… the Train had appeared and she had gone to run. They had grabbed her before she could get away. She had struggled, and then it goes blank.

 Then, for the first time, it came to her. They had knocked her out. Brought her with them; they had condemned her to their fate as well. The Train hadn’t come for her.

 The Train hadn’t come for her…

 She should have never been here to begin with and now she would die for nothing.

 Die for nothing…

 She didn’t want to die.

 Suddenly she found herself falling backwards. The Raincoat was still staring at her. She had made it outside its Playground. But why?

 Everyone watched her is shock, horror and envy. The air darkened farther and she could hear the sound of wheels on a track.

 The Train!

 She turned and watched it as it appeared behind her. It slowed, stopped and the doors opened. She stood, not hearing the voices of protest. Lizz looked around at the now even smaller group and shouted “Shut up! This is for her.”

 “And her alone.” Continued Luke.

 Felix whispered to her “Go Hayley. Go home…”

 She took one long look behind her at the friends behind her. They were the first real friends she had had, friends willing to put their lives on the line for her. Friends who did put their lives on the line for her. New tears poured down her cheeks and a small smile appeared on her lips.

 “Thank you.” She whispered to them.

 She turned and walked in.

 The doors closed.

 And she was gone.


	6. Chapter 6

 When the Train was gone everyone held their breath at the Raincoat. It didn’t move. Suddenly its body started to flash, as if light was coming from the coat. It moved over it, like the light from the windows on a train. The barrier dispersed, a yellow glow decorating the edges of it as it melted away.

 Once the barrier was gone the creature vanished, as if something had whipped it away in one quick movement.

 What was left was the feeling of saying goodbye. The air was empty and dry.

 Silence fell on the group. The feeling of confusion pressed down on them. It squirmed in them and rose into their heart, igniting into a spark.

 They could return home.

 They could go home!

 From silence grew murmuring and from murmuring came chatter and from chatter erupted shouts of joy and glee. Lizz looked about herself. They were being too loud and for the first time she felt truly scared about the noise they were making. Everyone was shouting at the top of their voices and the noise would attract monster to them.

 “Shut it! Shut up everyone! Quiet! Shut up!” she screamed.

 The noise died down until everyone was silently staring at her. Some were angry, some were scared but mostly, they were hopeful. They had been blinded to the horror they had always felt here.

 They were going to kill themselves if they weren’t careful, and she was sure as hell not going down with them.

 “Look, we have to be quiet! Otherwise we will be killed! Look, rest up for the night and tomorrow we will keep going on. But no more fussing. Hayley went back for a reason; we might not get that opportunity. Ever! So don’t get your hopes up.”

 These words didn’t go down well however. Some of them started to shout immediately at her, telling her to ‘shut it’ and ‘fuck off’. Some started to cringe at the realization of how loud they had been, all had a look of someone who had been told the sour truth.

 They eventually went to sleep but it was begrudgingly. Throughout the night though, whispering replaced the snores.

 What were the conditions to create a return home?

 Everything had changed now.

 Every single, little thing.

 Home.

 Sleep never really came to anyone in those long hours of night. The time that passed could have been days, and it felt like it was days too. Light had just returned to the air when everyone started to sit up or walk about.

 There was barely a sound as everyone stood and wandered about with excitement etched into their features. There was chatter and a general amount of energy, which had been absent before. Now everyone was raring to go and didn’t seem to want to take no as an answer.

 Lizz managed to settle everyone down before announcing, “We have to move on! We have to keep walking and find another place to settle down for the night. That Raincoat was a custom, but that doesn’t mean that a normal Raincoat might not be nearby. If we are not careful, we could still be killed.”

 And that started another fuss. A rather large one. And because of that, she found herself panicking to calm them down again. Soon that large fuss became borderline riot.

 Lizz stepped back.

 Luke stepped forward.

 He glared at everyone who were starting to step towards them.

 “Will you shut up!” he screamed, dulling down the roar “If you want to die, fine! The way you’re all screaming, we’ll all be dead in seconds! You’re calling every monster on this island to us! One person went home. She went home for a reason, that doesn’t mean we will also go home! There is no point in getting your hopes up.”

 No one liked this news, but it was true. They would have to remain here until the Train decided they were worthy of returning home. If that decision was made and that was a big ‘if’. They would have to press on, continue living this existence until that day came, if that day came.

 Luke nodded, thankful to have his point across. He didn’t really understand why Hayley has been chosen to return home, but he was sure that the reason was something that didn’t apply to most of them. Probably all of them.

 He started to walk on, as if he had still not reached his destination. Everyone followed. Amy walked up and slipped her hand into his. She was clearly happy for Hayley but looked so drained by losing her. Maybe it was because she had lost two people she had cared about in one go.

 Marvin had died.

 He turned to see his body; they should bury it.

 It was gone.

 Then something occurred to him, something he hadn’t noticed before. The bodies of the dead never seemed to remain in their resting place, even when they were not moved. They would simple vanish. Maybe he had just concluded that the monsters that chased them would just take the bodies when they didn’t have others to pursue. He had always subconsciously thought that the bodies were probably eaten. Goodness knows, he had seen enough hedgehogs feasting to not just simply conclude that. But no monster here would leave the chance to maul them all in their sleep just for a dead body, which wasn’t worth eating to begin with.

 Did they simply just vanish?

 Fade away.

 No, that couldn’t be.

 Maybe they returned home, unsolved deaths, unknown circumstances, and cause of death unknown. The people who vanished and returned years later, dead. With the cause of death unidentified. Could they have be precursors of what was to come for them?

 He suddenly felt sick. People were walking past him but he could hardly notice him. Marvin wouldn’t get a proper burial. That… just didn’t seem right. He fell to his knees as he stared at deathbed of his friend.

 Amy knelt beside him and pressed her hands around his shoulders and leaned against him. He clasped his hands together and placed them against his forehead.

 “Amy?” he whispered, “Why do people die?”

 “So others can live.” She whispered back “People die so we can live on for them. And so long as we’re alive, we can remember them.”

 “But is it really worth the life of others.”

 “Only if we make it worth it.” Felix replied. He had stopped in from of him. The sun caught his glasses, which made them glow white. He looked hateful and cruel “So never pity the dead, only live in honor of them.”

 He looked up and walked around them. Luke let his head drop, sighed and stood up. Amy watched Felix cautiously. No one liked him for how he treated Hayley. But he seemed sad, somehow.

 Luke stood and swerved round “I like how you talk like you know everything.”

 “I don’t know everything. I just know what I know.”

 “You will know what I’m talking about then.” Felix stopped. “What makes you think you could have understood what Hayley was going through, when we, people who knew and cared about her, didn’t? Do you seriously think that you could begin to understand her?”

 “I didn’t. I just think she wasn’t supposed to be here and by being here, she was committing a sin against herself. That’s why she remained so long. And that’s also why she returned home.”

 They watched him walk away. They watched him for a while until he had all but vanished into the trees. Amy took hold of Luke’s elbow. He nodded and began to walk.

 The sun rose slowly. The orange gold light poured through the trees, illuminating them as they went. The air grew steadily colder and when late morning arrived it was clear that the weather was not going to get any warmer.

 The pale sky and chilly weather dampened the spirits of everyone. Their slow pace meant that many walked with people who they had never walked with before. Something had changed, everyone seemed quieter and closer. It could have been the cold, but it just didn’t seem right.

 Felix was walking out in front of everyone. He was still separated from everyone.

 Derek was limping badly, but he seemed to be coping. Neil and Ashley were supporting him as he walked. They had lost the First-Aid Kit they had gain somewhere in the chaos. They hadn’t even managed to get a splint on it. No one offered a coat or anything to hold it in place. So he had to suffer without support.

 Lizz was kicking stones and pointing out roots in front of him to help him have as smooth as trek as possible.

 “Hey… Luke?” she asked. He looked at her. “Thanks for helping me back there. I don’t think anyone would have calmed down if you hadn’t spoken out.”

 “A leader is someone everyone looks to. They look to you, so don’t worry about it.”

 She looked at Amy, but she just shook her head. Luke didn’t want the responsibility of leader. Leaders are supposed to protect, and how can you protect when you are running for your life like everyone else. The only person he would protect is Amy. He could promise that much and that much only.

 Felix tried his best to ignore the whispers behind him. He knew the ones behind him were whispering about him. He tried not to care, he was used to being whispered about. _They_ used to whisper about him too, those scumbags. They never whispered about his sister, their looks said it all though.

 He clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. _They_ should have been here. Running for _their_ lives, being torn apart. If this world existed, then it shouldn’t have been his job to deal with them in the first place. He shouldn’t be punished for that.

 Courtney didn’t deserve to be punished. His hands fell limp. Why did she die, hadn’t she suffered enough? He fought back tears.

  _“Better to die than suffer longer.”_

 Such a sweet voice she had. The words she had spoken at their grandmother’s funeral. She had had terminal cancer and had fought it hard until her husband had died. Then it had hit her hard. She went in her sleep. The pain had ended quickly enough. Mercifully so.

 Mercy…

 Mercy?

 Could this evil, cruel world, really have, feel, mercy? Was that the reason?

 Then something ran across his path. A small, quick scurrying thing, and although he didn’t really see it, he could have sworn it had six or more legs. The path in front of him was quiet. He could still hear the, now, low chatter behind him. He was still with the others.

 Then he heard it move again. Through the bushes the noise traveled and came to a stop. The path went off to a bend to the left from there. His blood went cold with the thought of what it might be. He started to follow it though; at least he could see what it was.

 He walked quickly around the bend, but no creature appeared. Instead it dashed off away from him. He looked at the leaves for a while, confused.

 He then followed the path around to an opening.

 He gasped. Between the trucks of trees lay little huts. No taller than his knees. Mud brown huts, seemingly carved from the mud and stone. Some had thatched roots and small square windows in their sides. Others were domed and some were cut off, showing the hollow inside.

 What amazed him more was the furniture inside. Beds and tables, chairs and desks, lanterns and pots. Colourful blankets, and bright rugs. They also had gardens, and campfires, and fences. There was the small white line of a stream, and over them where bridges.

 The people must have been tiny, because these dollhouse-sized structures couldn’t have housed anything bigger than a hand. It was surreal and dream-like.

 Everyone arrived around the bend. They stood in awed at the structures. Everyone started to wander around them. A silly, child-like wonder came over them. They danced and ambled through the little town, careful not to step on anything.

 Lizz appeared at the opening. She stopped and stared at everything “Luke, have you seen anything like this before?”

 Amy arrived beside her and Luke followed. He looked about, wide-eyed “No…”

 “It’s a little town. It’s wonderful.” Amy whispered as she stepped out into the town. It looked like a fairy settlement in her eyes, the reminder of a long past childhood. She almost danced over them.

 “What is this place?” asked Luke, dumb-founded. Neil, Derek and Ashley caught up with them pushed through into the opening. They walked and limped past the structures and to the other side of the opening. It was almost as if they couldn’t see the buildings.

 They ran over to them and stuttered out “Can you see those buildings?”

 They looked at them dumb-founded, as if they had gone mad. Ashley even looked around them to make sure he hadn’t missed anything.

 “What buildings? There’s nothing there but strange stones.” Luke looked back but could still see the buildings.

 Ashley looked down at Derek “He needs some rest.”

 They took him farther into the trees and sat him on a low branch. He panted, resting his head back against the trunk.

 “Damn! This is painful. Do you think we’ll find any bandages anywhere?”

 “I don’t think so. I can’t understand how you can’t see those houses. They’re like something you’d read in a book. I just can’t understand how you don’t see them.”

 “Didn’t you say anything is possible in this place?”

 “Yes… but nothing just happens in this place. There must be a reason we can see it and you can’t.”

 “Maybe you should get everyone away from there then.”

 Luke’s eyes widened before dashed back into the opening. Everyone watched him in shock. Ashley started to run after him “I’ll help him.”

 They ran back into the opening. As they burst through the tree line, Luke commanded that Ashley should go and lookout. Ashley didn’t see the point but did it anyway. He ran for one of the trees in front of him and started to climb it quickly.

 Everyone was still marveling at the structures below their feet. Luke ran straight for Amy and grabbed her hand; he turned and pulled her away from the trees.

 “Luke, what’s the matter?”

 “They’re dangerous, damn it! How on Earth are we going to get everyone away from here?” he snapped.

 Ashley lifted his leg over the final branch and looked down at everyone. He still couldn’t see the structures and was wondering what they looked like.

 Suddenly, his eyes caught something; around the rounded rocks was a transparent fence. He could see through it but it was clearly there. It started to become solid, making him feel fascinated. He felt a child-like wonder come over him as we tilted his head to the side and stared intently at the fences.

 Then he felt panic set in as he noticed the groove that ran under it. It curved round and round until it passed itself again and again.

 The fence faded once again and he could then see the full scale of the markings. It was a single spiral, which curved around and ended under his perch. To his horror, he realized that he was sat in the middle of an ammonite.

 Luke looked up at him from the brushes surrounding them, and watched as Ashley’s face contoured into terror. He had seen something.

 “Ashley! What’s wrong!?” he howled, hoping the threat of a monster nearby would knock sense into everyone. He looked about everyone; it was like they couldn’t hear him. They were completely enchanted by the little wonders at their feet.

 “Ammonite!” Ashley screamed. Everyone looked at him.

 “Ammonite!” he screamed again.

 Suddenly panic arose from the large group. They stampeded for the bushes. Some of them never made it.

 A girl fell to the floor behind Felix. He turned to her, grabbed her hands and tried to pull her to her feet. She started wailing as he did, making him look at her in confusion. Her brown hair was wiggling as if there was something underneath it. She screeched again and blood stained the brown locks.

 A pair of dark pincer emerged from the hair and a shining golden body followed. It was a beetle like creature with eight legs and four pink bulbous eyes. It moved slowly and deliberately over the weakening girl.

 Felix stepped back. It snapped it’s forceps at him and he continued to back away from it. The creature scuttled towards him and he turned and ran the other way.

 The girl’s leg was snatched and she was dragged away by another beetle. They poured out of the bushes in their dozens. The leaves heaved with them and they latched onto the ankles nearest to them, felling their victims and tearing them apart.

 Ashley watched as one climbed up the tree he was perched on. It clipped it wicked pincers as it rose. He reached up and grabbed the branch above his head and snapped it. He then swatted at it with the wooden appendage. It ducked away but another crawled up after it.

 This one ran around the trunk until it was behind him. He hit it with the branch but the one in front of him ran at him instead.

 Ashley watched in horror as a third ran up the bark at him. He panicked, lost his balance and fell. The pain shot through his wrist and shoulder as he landed on the rounded rocks. He yelled and slowly rolled off the unnatural boulders.

 The three beetles on the tree above him watched him before jumping down at him. They landed and homed in on him. He looked at them, sweat forming on his brow. The way he had landed had knocked everything out of him. Scratches littered his skin, his shoulder throbbed and wrist burned. He let his head slump and closed his eyes.

 This was it.

 Felix saw him as he fell. He ran up and kicked the golden insects with all his force and grabbed Ashley’s shirt.

 “Get up! Hurry!” he screamed, his voice gruff and deep.

 “My wrist…”

 “You’re legs aren’t fucking broken, get up and run!” he grabbed Ashley’s good arm and pulled him up. He shoved him forward and they ran into the bushes.

 Everyone piled through the bushes and pushed through the trees. They dodged the branches as the insects pursued them.

 Lizz heard the screaming and grabbed Derek’s arm.

 “What’s wrong?” he asked.

 “They’re screaming! That’s not a good thing!”

 Neil lunged under his other arm and pulled him along. They limped along as fast as they could. Derek’s leg was in a bad way. The bone was bulging out of the skin of his thigh and he couldn’t even place his foot on the ground. Bruising was going down and beyond his knee.

 Luke and Amy passed by them before running back. They started pushed Derek forward. He hopped along on his good foot before Luke held his shoulders as well, lifting him completely off the floor.

 Amy ran out in front of them and snapped branches out of the way for them. Other teens now appeared in the dozens through the trees. They ran through ahead of them, beetles in chase.

 Blood was pouring from some of their ankles.

 They ran still.

 Felix pulled Ashley through the leaves and shrubbery to the tree they had left Derek and Lizz. They were gone, but bloody footprints lead them through the trees. They came across a body of the young swarthy skinned boy who was still breathing and sobbing pathetically. His leg was torn clean to the bone, and the calf muscle was hanging slightly, blood pooling around it. Felix lifted his foot and kicked the back of the boy’s skull, snapping his neck and killing him.

 Ashley looked at him in horror “He won’t have to suffer in pain.”

 He started again, pulling Ashley along. They nearly ran into the other groups. They ran around them. Felix looked back before lifting Derek’s legs and carrying him forward. Ashley helped Amy clear the way for them with his good arm.

 Now the beetles trailed through under foot. Ashley and Amy leapt as they passed underneath them.

 Everyone could see them now. Derek pointed to one as it scuttled past “What the fuck is that?”

 “It was an ammonite!” screamed Ashley “That whole thing.”

 “It was an illusion, they’re customs.”

 Suddenly the trees gave and they piled into water. They were waist deep in a murky pond. The banks reached into overhanging willows and vanished from sight.

 The insects crawled to the bank but halted at the water. Others ran past and over them, several where crushed in the crossfire.

 Their golden shells were smashed into pieces, cream blood poured into the pond. It bubbled on contact before fizzing into nothing.

 Luke watched it. He started to panic.

 “We have to get out of the water! Look at what it did to that beetle!” He wadded towards the nearest bank. The beetles swarmed towards it but refused to touch the water.

 Felix swam towards him, stopping him from getting there “Damn it! It’s not the water, it’s the beetles! They dissolve in the water!”

 He grabbed on by its leg and pulled it into the water. It squealed and clicked as the gold of its shell dulled and melted away to reveal a pink under belly beneath. It foamed and sizzled smaller and smaller like a bath bomb. Soon it was gone.

 Luke’s panicked subsided as he watched it vanish. He started laughing nervously.

 He turned to Felix “They can’t go into water. We’re safe! They can’t go into water!”

 “He’s afraid of water.” Amy explained “When we were young he was dragged out by the tide on holiday, he’s never been swimming since.”

 She wadded over to them and tried to pull her brother away, but he seemed to be frozen to the spot. Felix watched the insects, in case they jumped at them, before turning and pushing Luke away from them.

 He didn’t trust that they were safe at all. Others were still flying into the pond and they continued plowing into the willow. Screaming ran out through the trees. This hardly seemed like a safe place.

 They wadded towards the willows, following the others. Derek found himself able to float in the water. He paddled himself to a floating log. He clung to the piece of wood and used his good leg to swim forward.

 Felix swam over to him and started to pull him along.

 “Why are you helping me?”

 Felix didn’t turn back to face him “I don’t trust those things and you couldn’t get away from them with your leg.”

 “I’m fine with a float, thank you.” He snapped.

 “Not if you want to get away. Don’t worry; I had some navy training before arriving here, so I know some basic medical once we’re safe. Or safe enough.”

 “Why didn’t you say so sooner?” he snapped.

 “I didn’t think anyone would let me, with the glares that can kill and all.” He laughed.

 Derek frowned, feeling stupid, he should have thought of that. But, remembering what Luke had said when they first arrived; he might have been the first person to have any true medical training. It made him wonder why someone who would be able to heal someone could possibly hurt anyone.

 “Why are you here? What did you do?”

 “I punched a guy to death. Well, he was probably dead.”

 Derek looked at the muscles on his arms and found himself not doubting it. Body size, he resembled Connor, who wrestled regularly, but what should he have expected of a navy cadet.

 “Why are you helping me?”

 “Nicking a car doesn’t seem like something worthy of capital punishment.” Felix laughed, “Who knows, maybe we’re not just being punished for what we did but what we will do?”

 Then something, something deep in the back of Derek’s mind, clicked. His heart skipped a beat and he felt his blood run cold.

 For what they will do.

 In the future.

 If they hadn’t come here, Connor would still be alive, they would have followed him. And Connor wouldn’t have thought twice about killing someone, and he could’ve taken someone down easily.

 And they wouldn’t have stopped him.

 A person would’ve died.

 For nothing.

 Unlike them.

 They would have what was coming to them. They would pay the price. The ultimate price. With their lives.

 He couldn’t move at this revelation. He wasn’t a bad person, not that he thought anyway. But would not preventing a crime from happening, would that make a person bad?

 Yes it would. He would be worse because he chose his own life over another’s.

 He turned to the beetles; looking at them with some kind of understanding he had never had before. They were protecting the life of another. A life worth more than his own, because they were good, unknown to him, but good.

 Some part of him wanted to join the dead, end the pain and do the right thing. But the tug of Felix pulling his float reminded him of Hayley, and also Amy, what had they done to be cast into a world like this? Had they done some form of wrong like that?

 Had they done some form of self-inflicting evil by not preventing something? Or…

 Or was it purely an evil against themselves?

 Hayley had mourned over a girl who she claimed had done nothing to deserve being here. Was she really mourning herself?

 “Stop.” he said suddenly.

 Felix turned to him. Derek looked shocked, like he had remembered or realized something.

 “Leave me here.”

 “What?! No!”

 He looked him square in the eye. “Leave me here. Everyone will escape quickly that way. I’m a hindrance with this leg.”

 “I’m not leaving you!”

 “Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.” He was calm, even smiling softly; there was warm emptiness in his eyes.

 He was ready to die.

 The beetles watched them avidly. They were climbing over each other and some desperately reached over the edge of the pond to get to them. The last few surviving teenagers flew into the grey-brown water and as they did the beetles continue to snap at their ankles and feet.

 One successfully snagged a small lad’s boot causing him to fall into the water headfirst. He splashed and gargled as he struggled for air, being over-powered by the beetles until they dragged him ashore and slowly ripped chunks out of him.

 He screamed, wailed in agony. His screams rang out, and echoed through the trees. The sound bounced off every piece of branch, leaf and trunk. The air was filled with it and it pressed down heavily on them. Their silence deepened.

 Blood dripped down into the pond, turning it black. It reached out and, like the fingers of fog over land, pouring slowly across the water. Those who had escaped into the water felt their skins’ went cold and pale.

 Felix turned towards them before turning back again. He grabbed Derek’s arm and the log he clung to before starting towards the willows. The beetles spooked him but it wasn’t that which as caused him to swim for safety.

 Lizz saw them and waded towards them. She instantly tried to force Felix away from Derek.

 “Get away from him!” she snapped, pushing her large body between them. Felix backed away, nearly stumbling on submerged stones.

 Lizz didn’t move even when he lifted his hands and gave into her. Derek was watching the beetles like a doll. Lizz continued to pull him into the overhanging branches.

 Everyone was heading towards the willows now. They had figured out that it must be safer to be hidden from view than in the sight of the hunters. The blood of their latest victim had spooked everyone.

 They had now lost interest in their kill and were now focusing on their new prey. They were still for a while, chattering quietly. Everyone was suddenly put on edge. The creatures’ calm fuelled their panic and they struggled against the water to the willows faster than before.

 There was a click. Everyone froze and turned to look for the noise. Felix felt cold.

 At the front of the pond, a smaller beetle’s elytra’s were raised into the air, its gold shell shinning in the early sunlight. Four wings unfurled and blurred from sight with a steady hum. More clicks followed and soon all of them were buzzing. They humming grew to a loud roar.

 A scream ripped through the opening as they rose into the air. Everyone was suddenly diving under the water, desperate to get away. The beetles rose one by one and flew across the water.

 Derek turned and watched them as they circled the pond, grabbing people by their necks. Some were ducking or pulling them into the water, dragging the beetles with them.

 Luke was ducking underwater, swimming along before coming up briefly for air. Neil was grabbing as many he could risk and pulling them underwater. Although his neck was safely submerged, his arm was cut to shreds with sheets of blood running down his limps. Amy and Ashley had vanished into the foliage.

 Lizz had gotten hold of a branch from the water and was flinging it back and forth, trying to defend Derek and her both. Again, that odd silence fell upon them. Everything slowed down around him, his leg pulsed with pain.

 Part of him sat and wondered why this was happening. Why did one of them return and the others were left to suffer? These people were good, they were protecting themselves and there is nothing wrong with that, everyone has a right to protect themselves to some extent. And they had gone farther than that, they had protected each other. Some at a cost. A dire cost.

 Marvin…

 Marvin was dead, had died…

 Protecting Hayley.

 Why did he die when she lived? And return home?

 How was that justice?

 How was that, in anyway, justice?!

 Why was he being punished?

 He would’ve done time. He would’ve learned, he would’ve learned.

 He wouldn’t have.

 He would’ve continued if Connor had told him to. Everyone feared Connor and he knew how to pushed people around, although he respected and considered himself as a friend of Connor’s, but he wouldn’t have crossed him. And Connor probably wouldn’t have stop at car stealing.

 What next?

 How many lives would have been ruined before they had finished?

 They would be stopped before they started.

 Justice before the need for it.

 The perfect justice.

 Felix submerged himself. His training meant he was a brilliant swimmer. It was also one of them few times he could see without his glasses. The water magnified everything.

 He would still disbelieve what he saw next for years to come.

 Derek was floating above him on his log. His leg was dark with bruising from half way down his calf to out of sight underneath his shorts. It also hung limp whilst his over leg kicked and swayed in the water.

 Suddenly a black fog appeared the water with Derek beside it. It spread in a straight line across the pond. Two silver strokes dashed along with it. Dark brown planks ran along them, like the underside of a train track. The black fog spread across the surface of the pond and surrounded Derek. It even leaked into the water like ink and surrounded his legs.

 He almost vanished into the blackness when it cleared and he became visible again. A train shot across the tracks and slowed to a halt. Before he could register what was happening, Derek was being lifted into the machine and vanished from sight. The train then, at length, lurched forward before slowly chugging away. The fog faded and the water above became clear again.

 His lung burned for air but he could not find the will in him to swim back to the surface. Stunned by the train his body could not bearit anymore. He floated to the surface and he found himself staring at the light flowing through the trees. Silence echoed through the trees and he realized he was alone. Completely alone. Not a beast or person was near.

 He closed his eyes and breathed in the stale thick air. It reeked of iron and he almost fooled himself into believing that he was back home. He lifted his hand to his glasses, to whip them clean of water, smearing blood onto them instead.

 He panicked, submerged again and swam for the willows beside him. He pushed through them and swam to the surface. It was like a war-zone. People were screaming, covered in blood and the insects were still flying about, having pushed through the vines.

 Luke, Ashley and Amy were gone from sight. Lizz was distraught and looking around herself aimlessly it seemed. Neil was pale with the lack of blood, he was wading towards the shore of the pond.

 This side of the pond was filled with leaves, lily pads and other plant rubbish. The water was murkier and the cream blood was making it thicker and thicker.

 “Lizz! Run! Come on!” Felix shouted. The water became shallow enough for him to walk up to her and grab her arm. Pulling her towards the bank.

 “Where’s Derek?” he shouted.

 “I-I… I don’t know!”

 “Where did he go?!” he demanded.

 Lizz looked shocked as if she couldn’t remember something but knew she should have known it. She looked at the water around her legs, as if she was trying to recall where she was.

 “I don’t know!” she screamed “Where is he?!”

 Felix went to answer, but couldn’t fine the memory in him either. He remembered being underwater and seeing something, a black mist and something in it, but little else. No. Nothing else. Derek had vanished in that mist.

 The Train.

 It must have been.

 He couldn’t bring a clear memory of what had happened. He tried but no image came to mind. Nothing came.

 It couldn’t have been the Train, he remembered Hayley leaving and that Ashley kid had remembered his own arrival. He rubbed his arms.

 What did he recall?

 What did he recall?

 …

 Mist.

 Black mist.

 It had been like ink in the water, he remembered that the clearest. Lizz had been near the mist too. That would explain the memory loss. The mist caused memory loss. The Train’s way of protecting itself. If no one could remember it, then no one could stop it. Although Felix highly doubted that it mattered either way, he doubted a human could do anything to something that travelled from one world to another, possibly one universe to another.

 He could feel the weight of the loss in his mind. It wasn’t a heavy loss… not like his sister.

 His sister…

 Where had she gone?

 And that Martin guy…

 He barely remembered them.

 He barely remembered his own sis-

 There was a sharp pain at his throat. It had been quick but now burned like it was alight with flames.

 He couldn’t forget her.

 Lizz looked like she was going to be sick. He slowly lifted his hand to his neck. It was warm, hot even.

 He couldn’t forget his little sister.

 His beautiful, loving, kind sister.

 He wiped his neck and found it wet with something hot. His vision blurred and stuttered.

 And the bastard who had hurt her.

 Kill him.

 He looked at his hand. It was red. He looked at Lizz, who was reaching out to him. Everything looked like some old movie. Faded black at the edges.

 Kill him!

 She was nearly touching him, and as she spoke, he realized that he couldn’t hear anything but a muffled roar. Not a coherent noise could be heard. Not as far as he was concerned.

 He deserves to die!

 His legs buckled. Lizz gasped as he hit the water. The beetle who had hit him was now veering and flying back at him. Lizz however grabbed it and shoved it under.

 Felix took a deep breath and tried to relax himself. He tried to remember his training, but couldn’t seem to gather any of his emotions. He was starting to feel cold but not the cold of water or fear, but something spreading from the inside out.

 His shoulders were just above the water line. His blood seeped into his shirt and into the water. He could feel his stomach churning with the pain. If he wasn’t careful, he would be sick. His vision went blurry and black at the edges.

 But he could hear everything. His breath echo with deep reverberations and although every little sound bellowed, it was muffled. He felt his stomach lurch at the screams, they were so loud.

 He became vaguely aware of something pulling at his arm, which was tingling with numbness. He was pulled to his feet and dragged from the water onto a beach and then into tall grass and leaves. His feet skidded and dragged on the ground as he tried to walk with it.

 Lizz pressed her hand against his wound firmly. He was dizzy and the sudden loss of blood had hit him like a sack of spuds, literally it seemed. She tried to talk to him “Felix! Felix! Get a grip of yourself!”

 Neil ran up behind them. He was nearly sick when he saw the state Felix was in. He remembered how Connor had looked when they has first arrived. He wasn’t as dark skinned as Connor but the now sickly coloured skin reminded him of his dead friend. There was a lot of blood running down the left side of his body.

 “What happened?”

 “Sliced his neck. The beetles.” She explained, out of breath.

 “That can be life-threatening! What are we going to do?”

 “Just keep the pressure on it.” Felix stuttered, “Wounds on the head and neck often do bleed a lot, even if they’re not deep.”

 He reached his hand up and pressed it against Lizz’s, allowing her to gently pull hers from underneath. A beetled landed and crawled up beside him. Neil stamped on it. It cracked and the cream blood poured across the wet dirt.

 Several of the teens passed them by.

 “Look! Don’t mean to drag this out but how do we get rid of these things, I thought they didn’t leave their shells! The others didn’t leave before, why are they leaving now?”

 “They don’t normally, but most have walls, so who knows. They’re always customs, that’s what we know.”

 One person tripped over Felix’s ankle which was sprawled out in front of him. The lad started to crawl away when another person kicked him in the back of the head as they passed. He lifted his head again, bloody and weeping. He continued crawling and began praying in Arabic.

 Neil pulled Felix to his feet and dragged him into the trees.

 Lizz watched the young Muslim as he crawled “Praying to God in the devil’s domain seems a bit pointless.”

 She turned to run when two beetles landed on top of him and locked into him. He screamed. But Lizz could do nothing.

 Nothing.

 She turned and ran, leaving the body to be savaged.

 Luke and Amy were standing by a large thick tree; it looked out of place in the thinner, meeker ones. Ashley was swinging from a branch, waving everyone over.

 “Why are you stopping?!” Lizz snapped.

 “This is the edge of the ammonite.” Luke pointed to a deep curving groove, which swept round into the trees. It had more lines leading into it.

 “So!?”

 “They won’t leave it.”

 Sure enough, she looked around and saw the beetles leaving the circle and fading from sight, quite literally. She leapt up and over the line.

 She looked around but couldn’t see Neil or Felix.

 “Where is Neil?”

 “He was helping that Felix guy. Looked like they were hurt pretty badly.”

 “Yeah…” she started to run onwards when she heard Amy calling after her. She slowed and they ran on together. They were barely ten feet into the trees when they came to a well like structure. Felix was leaning on it and Neil was pulling a rope connected to a bucket of water. He took the water and splashed his bloody arms with it.

 He then cupped a handful of water and washed Felix’s wound. He continued this several times. He then ripped his three-quarter length sleeve off, despite the fact that it was torn in multiple places. Under Felix’s instructions, he wrapped the makeshift bandage around his neck. Felix then tied the knot and he took a deep breath.

 Neil’s wounds were already healing. Most of them were no bigger than a paper cut but some were still bleeding slightly. He rinsed his arms again.

 Lizz walked up to them “What do you think we should do?”

 “Don’t know.” Neil panted.

 Felix looked fit to pass out but refused to even sit down. He glared at them when they tried to force him to rest.

 “I know it’s not the best way to do things, and I do need to rest, but I’ve also been taught to get an injured person as far away from danger as you can. Or at least try. And if I can still hear those things, then we haven’t gone far enough for my liking.”

 “Nowhere is safe here.”

 “I know that but somewhere safer than them.” He rasped between breaths. He was now sweating and all he really wanted was sleep.

 Neil linked his arm with one of Felix’s and helped him walk away. Amy followed.

 It had Lizz wondering…

 Was he really a bad person?

 Or just viewed in the wrong light?


	7. Chapter 7

 They had walked until they reached another opening. What made this one different was the fact that no trees could have grown on it because it was a rocky surface almost all the way across.

 The dark stone was shiny wet and resembled slate. It was smooth and even the cracks were rounded. The large slags were set above one another into a deformed pyramid shape.

 Felix rested down against a dryer ridge of stone. He pulled some of the moss growing out of the cracks and bunched it together before pulling it behind his head as a pillow.

 He tilted his head back and fell to sleep.

 Over the next several hours, the remaining group slowly found their way back to the stony structure. Lizz and Neil waited for them. Luke and Ashley returned.

 By this point, Ashley’s wrist was swollen and black, bruising also ran up to his collar bone. Now things had calmed down, it was becoming clear that he was in discomfort. If he moved his wrist or shoulder, he would wince.

 “Where’s Derek?” Luke asked.

 “Gone…” Neil looked at Lizz.

 She lowered her head “I don’t actually remember, but Felix and I reckon the Train took him back.”

 Everyone looked at each other.

 “Are you sure?”

 “No. I don’t actually remember, like I don’t remember getting here. But that was the only way he could have gone. I mean, people don’t just vanish.”

 “We did.” Amy commented. She was sat cross-legged beside Felix playing with some of the yellowing moss. She looked at them before bowing her head “Maybe he went home like Hayley did.”

 “It’s funny. We don’t remember the Train but we know it’s a train.” Ashley commented.

 “Much like you know how long you’ve slept but have no way of telling.” Lizz agreed.

 “Yeah...”

 They rested for several hours. Felix slept through most of that time. Neil was shivering now. The loss of blood and water had made him cold. He wondered if they could get sick here.

 His arms still throbbed with pain but the bleeding had stopped. Everyone around him looked cold and quite a few were injured. The count had dropped again. They had lost about two dozen people.

 Somehow, it didn’t matter to him.

 It was inhumane but he couldn’t find much care in himself. Everyone here was going to die one day, but he wasn’t certain he was ready to go yet. He could go on with the terror, but to die in such a horrible way, just for stealing a car, was just something he wasn’t ready for.

 It was selfish.

 He knew that.

 And maybe he deserved to die for that.

 But that didn’t mean he had to like it.

 He pulled at the moss and started tearing it up.

 Was he really being selfish for wanting to live?

 Was that selfish?

 Surely not.

 Every human wants to live, even at the cost of another life, it was built into them in the same way their skin was. Survival of the fittest. The instinct to live.

 So… why had he been helping everyone?

 He risked himself pulling those beetles into water. He didn’t have to. So why did he do it?

 He looked at Felix. Goosebumps were running up his arm where the water had made way for cold. He would probably catch a chill. He didn’t care. He was getting what he deserved after the way he had treated Hayley.

 But… why did he care about Hayley?

 She never did anything for him.

 No, she didn’t, but…

 There was something about her that made him care. She had done nothing in exchange to earn that help, that care, yet she still somehow deserved it.

 She had been this quiet, depressed girl but somehow she had touched his heart. Touched everyone’s heart.

 He had disliked Felix purely because of his treatment of her. He had been offended as if he had been the one insulted.

 He had also helped save her.

 And he had helped protect Derek.

 And he was still here…

 Marvin had only helped Hayley, but it had cost him his life anyway. Hayley had also tried to save that girl and she had lit the fire, which gave them their escape.

 They hadn’t earned their way home.

 Cold jealously and anger grew in the pit of his stomach and ran down his limbs.

 Why had they gone home and everyone else hadn’t?

 Luke had protected everyone for thirty bloody years, as had Lizz!

 Marvin had lost his life protecting that girl!

 Why had they lost and the others won?!

 How was that fucking justice!?

 “Neil? What’s wrong? You look fit to punch someone.”

 He looked up to Luke, realizing he had spoken to him. But the anger didn’t subside. It overflowed.

 “Yeah, but the people I want to punch aren’t here.”

 “What do you mean?”

 “I mean why did Hayley and Derek go home when we have to stay here? Even people who have done nothing but protect? It’s completely disgusting. This is people’s lives we’re talking about here! Why should they be allowed to live?”

 “And what if they are being taken to death. A worse place than this? Have you ever thought of that?!”

 “Oh! Don’t give me that shit! You know that they’ve gone home, just like we know the Train took Derek. We all know they’ve gone home, and they don’t bloody deserve it!” he shouted.

 Everyone was silent. They couldn’t argue because it was true.

 “Bull…”

 Neil turned and glared at Felix, who had been woken by the shouting. He was rubbing his neck and looked at the fair haired teen through one eye.

 “What was that?!”

 “’Bull’, I said!” Neil lowed his head “Before Derek left, he told me to leave him. To let him die. He knew he was a burden and willingly sacrificed himself so we could live, so you might want show a bit of bloody respect.

 “He earned his way home. He deserved it! And that girl too. She hadn’t committed any crime to anyone but herself. I reckon she didn’t stop something from happening and she was sent here to learn that she should’ve done something, at least try.

 “My sister was sent here, but she was the sweetest and most innocent person I’ve ever known. The only crime, which involved her, was done to her. An unforgivable crime. But she blamed herself for it, generally believed that she deserved what that sick bastard did to her.

 “I’m being punished for a real crime. She was only sinning against herself!”

 Neil flinched. He frowned and guilt played along his face. He then remained silent for some time.

 Felix sat up and eventually managed to stand again. His neck had stopped bleeding and he had regained some colour back into his dark skin.

 He wobbled a bit but soon he was steady again. Everyone started off again. They were tired but they wouldn’t rest long. The terror was still strong inside them. Always there. It was like an ever lasting chill. No fire could warm it, no warmth could fill that void; that sick, icy, heavy emptiness.

 They pulled themselves on like a death match. They didn’t really look where they were going and didn’t really think about it either. They had travelled for about an hour when clouds formed overhead and the wind picked up.

 Neil had not spoken once in that time. His arms itched and throbbed but he couldn’t do anything about it. He kept replaying Felix’s words in his head. He found it hard to believe that Derek could be that selfless. He had always been stubborn, thoughtless; he’d never been the kind of guy to deny a person something if they had needed it though. But he would’ve never done anything if it meant going without himself.

 He was never that selfless.

 He was good to his friends, but not selfless.

 He had always been slightly depressed, but never suicidal.

 He would have never given his life up for someone.

 Never.

 Never…

 But he had…

 He had chosen not just death but a very unpleasant death too. He had asked to be left behind so everyone could escape. Even Felix, who no one had particularly liked.

 Maybe his leg had not been the only thing injured.

 He laughed inwardly. But there was no humor behind it. He felt guilty, as if he had been the murderer. The monsters hounding them.

 He…

 He had betrayed his friend.

 It had only been mentally, and it had only been brief, but it hadn’t changed the crime. He had doubted his friend. He was not learning. He would stay here until death.

 He deserved it.

 He deserved that.

 The group continued towards a field Luke knew was beyond the trees. He was sure about going towards it.

 The wind died down but the oncoming rain was making the air cold.

 Felix was starting to drift from the others. He would go behind trees and reappear another three meters away. His walking was unstable and staggered.

 He looked at the others but they seemed so far away. Not physically but mentally. They were distracted with fear. Every now and then, one would turn suddenly and look about them. They would then continue, although disturbed. No one would notice it at the same time, even though they reacted to the reactions.

 As he wandered in and out, it became more and more frequent. It was probably paranoia but it bugged him.

 It started to rain.

 Luke pulled his hood up. Amy fiddled beside him to get her hair into her’s. She looked worn, tired. Out of all of them, she had slept the least. So consumed by the fear of real nightmares, the thought of subjecting herself to her own wicked imagination was gut-wrenching. She had scarcely slept the night before but she would hardly rest again anytime soon.

 Her brother consoled her but his pats on the back were not relaxing or reassuring. They just reminded her of his presence. She smiled at him hollowly.

 “Amy?”

 She turned. Everyone behind her were still walking silently.

 Luke watched her “What’s wrong?”

 “I thought I heard someone calling me.”

 Luke looked at everyone behind them. No one seemed to have noticed. He looked down at his sister, who was so concentrated on hearing that he almost laughed.

 “It’s probably nothing. You’re hearing things. You’re tired and scared, so an ordinary noise will probably sound weird and possibly like voices.”

 She frowned at him. It hadn’t been the first time she had noticed something that others hadn’t, yet he still brushed her off. She looked back at the trailing group before turning and walking on.

 The rain grew heavy and the sky dark.

 It began to gather into puddles and the dry ground drank it up and turned to mud. The leaves, which made up the forest’s carpet floated between their shoes like little boats in a storm.

 It wasn’t long before the gravel on a bank beside became bare and drenched.

 A fourteen year old boy climbed the slope up to the bank and walked along its edge.

 “Get down from there, kid.” One of the older boys shouted to him. The boy gave him the fingers and continued on.

 “Oi you little shit! Get down.” A girl shouted.

 He got to a tree that’s roots had been bared by the rain. He leaned on the tree. And within a second he was half buried in it. The bank collapsed with a groan, causing everyone around it to jump away.

 “Well, you were told.” Was the reply to the child’s cries.

 He coughed as he kicked away rubble and stones. He spat the mud out of his mouth and pushed himself upright.

 A bird flew down beside him.

 It was small and thin, like a parrot with a similar yellow beak that was just a little longer. Its crest stuck up in a rose colour fading from its pink body. The wings and tail faded into green then yellow.

 He stared at it because it had been good few years since he had seen a bird. Its bright black eyes shone at him.

 “Honey!”

 “Mum?” replied the boy.

 “Honey, come home. Dinner will be ready soon.”

 “Mum?” he stood up “Where are you? Why are you here?”

 People watched him as they walked past. He looked at them bewildered.

 “Who are you talking to kid?” Lizz asked him as she walked by him.

 “My mum. I heard her. Can you see her?” he looked around at the trees about them.

 “There’s no adults here, stop kidding yourself.”

 “You’re an adult.”

 “Hardly.” She scoffed “You don’t really know if you’re an adult until you can handle serious things. I wish…”

 He didn’t notice her inward joke and kept searching for his mother. She looked at the bird beside him. It was perched innocently on the ground, chirping at her.

 Nothing was innocent in that world. Not even the humans.

 She stamped her foot but the bird didn’t budge. It twitched its head from side to side, still chirping away.

 “What the hell…”

 A lad about her age stopped beside her and stared at it. At length he said “Reminds me of a bird of paradise. Surely this cute thing can’t be of much harm.”

 “Can you hear what you’re saying?” she said before walking away.

 Soon others were having the same effects as the boy. They would start by hearing people calling them, which had caused a few fights among them, and it quickly grew to be more. People were having full conversations that only they could hear.

 Lizz had broken up at least three fights and six arguments; Luke had to intervene with two. They had yet to experience the voices themselves but Amy was having the full effect of it. She insisted that Hayley was calling her. But that was impossible.

 Hayley was gone.

 Luke had gone as far as grabbing her and shouting at her to get the point across, but it hadn’t worked. She was nearly hanging onto him out of despair because she knew what he was saying was true. That didn’t stop the calling though.

 Felix hadn’t had even the slightest effects of the voices because he was now far in front of everyone. The trees had grown far apart here and then they clustered together again over what looked like a field just ahead of him. He couldn’t hear the mass hysteria building up behind him and little did he care. His neck ached and he just felt like sitting and crying.

 A bird landed on a branch above his head. It tweeted, drawing his attention. The bright pink bird watched him with tawny eyes.

 “Felix?”

 He flinched. That voice. Soft but so distinct, he knew it well. He also knew he shouldn’t be able to hear it.

 “Courtney?” he breathed.

 “Felix? Where are you?”

 “No… you can’t be real!” he pressed his hands against his ears looking about in terror. If he was attacked now, he wouldn’t stand a chance, not even to run.

 “Felix? Where are you? I can’t see you.”

 “Stop it!” he looked up in dismay. The bird was still watching him.

 “Where are you? It’s me, your sister. Come out.”

 “Stop it! Stop it! Stop it! Stop it!” he chanted. Courtney was dead. He had watched her die. He had seen it himself.

 “You’re dead! You can’t be real!”

 It hesitated “How could you say that?” he could hear the tears in her voice. He looked at the trees, ready to scream. His knees buckled and he fell.

 The trees in front of him had low lying branches and although they were there and although it was dark, he could see a person just behind them. Short and slim, just like Courtney.

 “No… No! What’s going on?!”

 “What’s the matter?”

 He was silent.

 Silent for a long time.

 Behind him, he could hear everyone shouting. They were closer and it was clear everyone was facing the same thing as him.

 “Please come home Felix. You shouldn’t be in this place.”

 “No… I belong here now,”

 “What? Why would you say that? Why would say something so awful?!”

 “I failed you! I promised I would protect you and I didn’t. I couldn’t stop him, I couldn’t stop what he did to you!

 “I killed him, Courtney, I killed the bastard! I thought that if you wouldn’t do anything, I would. I wanted him to suffer, but not kill him. I just wanted to hurt and scare him, like he did to you. Give him something to always remember why he should never do that to someone again. A limp or something. Not kill him. I never meant to kill him.”

 Tears poured down his cheek “But when he told me what he did to you I couldn’t hold back. He enjoyed telling me, loved it, he couldn’t even hide it. He knew what he did was wrong but he loved it, watching what it did to you, what it did to me.

 “He didn’t deserve death but I killed him anyway. I killed him! Either way I let you down, I swore I would protect you but I didn’t. I couldn’t stop him and I couldn’t stop myself. I’m so sorry… I’m sorry!”

 He lifted his head to the sky, letting the rain overflow from his glasses. He screamed in turmoil. The figure in the trees watched him. It made no notion to move or comfort him.

 The others noticed him. Luke jogged up to him and leaned down, thinking he was in pain. That’s when he saw the tears. They were mingled with the rain but they were still distinctly there.

 “Luke…”

 “What Lizz?!” he snapped. She pointed to the trees, at the figure. When he saw it he felt the blood leaving his face. It was small and extremely distinct.

 A Raincoat.

 A Raincoat had been watching the whole time.

 It watched them for a while longer before slowly turning and walking away. The bird in the tree flew away also. They looked up as it left.

 Thunder rolled and a large blur of pink bellowed around them. The birds flew away. Everyone ducked, expecting an onslaught of violence but none came.

 “The voices have stopped.” Someone shouted.

 “Those birds must have been making them. There was no blood or pain but that has got to have been the worst thing I’ve experienced yet.” Amy stammered. She looked shell-shocked.

 Luke nodded. He rubbed her back comfortingly. She nodded and looked down at Felix. He was still crying and looked utterly broken.

 He didn’t move for some time. When he finally did move it was slow. They took him by the arm and walked into the field. The rain was relentless out in the open. Lightening flashed and thunder was soon to follow. They crossed the field into the trees again.

 The large group were still extremely restless from the last attack. Whether it was more psychological than they were used to or that they were so used to attack after attack, the group were very much on edge about their current situation. Lizz became sure rather quickly that none of them had seen the Raincoat, just them, and she made a point of telling those who had seen it to keep it that way. They were shaken as it was, anymore and it would be chaos.

 They rested until the rain stopped. The clouds lighten but granted no sunlight. The remaining water dropped down from leaf to leaf, from branch to branch. It dripped down onto their heads as they trekked the muddy forest.

 The gravel gritted and grinded underfoot and everyone was stumbling. Everyone was surprisingly tired. They were both physically and emotionally exhausted.

 Luke stopped for a few minutes and watched everyone slowly go pass. Lizz stood by him “Where are you heading for? We’re nearly at the cliffs, the other side of the island.”

 “Looking for the bank under them, we can rest there until everyone feels better, then we’ll follow the coast until we get to the marshes, we’ll head inland from there.”

 “The banks? A bit exposed, don’t you think? I understand it for the weather, but when the tide comes in, it reaches those caves and tadpoles can crawl in there. Maybe somewhere less exposed.”

 “Look at them Lizz, they’ve hardly slept and they are still shaken up by those birds. I don’t think they’ll make it to midday before they just start dropping.”

 “It’s close to the cabin.”

 “I know.”

 “Still not changing your plans are you?”

 “No.”

 “I think I have the right to ask why then?”

 “What’s the point? Nowhere is safe here, so why would we bother trying to find somewhere safe when we know it doesn’t exist. What’s the point, when now we’re put up against things like that?”

 “The point is that we have not fought tooth and nail for the last six decades, in some cases, to stay alive, just to die so easily.

 “I’m not depressed and there is most certainly nothing with my head to make me want to die. I’m sure it’s the same for everyone else. Who are you to decide who lives or dies because you’ve given up?”

 “For fuck’s sake Lizz! Look around you! Look around you! Where have you been the last twenty bloody years, huh?! This is hell!”

 “I’m well bloody aware of that, thank you!” Lizz spat. Their arguing had caught the attention of almost everyone. There was only about thirty or so that remained and they were clustered together, either for warmth or comfort. They watched, white glowing eyes, as the two battled it out.

 “It’s hell here! Hell! What part of that don’t you understand?! We will spend the rest of our lives here because of what we’ve done! No matter how petty that may be!

 “We will be hunted down for the rest of eternity if that’s what it takes because we are never going home!” Luke shouted so firmly that he sounded like he was panting.

 People flinched away from him.

 He stopped. Realizing what he had said, he looked around at everyone surrounding him. Their faces were horrified, like what little hope they had had been shattered by his exclamation.

 Felix, who had continued even when the others stopped, stumbled over some loose dirt and fell. He skidded down the steep slope, hitting a hump on the way down. He fell onto his back and continued to travel at speed. He rolled onto his side, desperately grabbing for purchase. But to no avail. The stones dragged along his back and he could feel the burning they left behind.

 He tumbled onto his knees, then his back, then his feet, then his knees again. He skidded down and saw the cliffs lying ahead of him.

 Stop…

 He was going to fly off its edge.

 Please stop…

 He could feel his body lurch forward as he veered over it.

 Oh God, please no!

 He could see the muddy ground below and beyond that the sea as it roared up against the land below. But he got no closer to it.

 Something was holding his wrist. When he turned to look at his savior, he was nearly sick.

 A Raincoat!

 A Raincoat was holding his wrist.

 A Raincoat!

 It was clutching him with a small pink hand. No claws or fur. A flesh human hand.

 Holy shit! A Raincoat!

 From its hood he could make out the shape of a chin and neck. Its face had lips and a nose. It had hair, short cropped and mousy brown.

 It smiled at him honestly.

 He could feel it pulling him away for the cliff until he was leaning away from it instead. But he barely noticed. All he could see was a monster with a firm grip on his wrist.

 A monster with a soft smile on its face.

 “Looks like you’ve seen a ghost.”

 He threw up.

 He could see her clearly now, her face. Hayley’s face. Hayley’s voice.

 She was here and alive. She was a Raincoat. Slowly, she released his wrist.

 “But careful next time, okay?” she smiled. But he couldn’t answer, not with her here, right here.

 He had watched her leave. Saw her as the Train left, as it took her home. Why?! Why was it here?! Why was she here?!

 “Felix! Felix?!”

 Someone was calling him.

 Amy.

 “Felix! Are you alright?!” she was leaning on the edge of the slope. It was, at least, 30 feet high and nearly vertical. He looked at Hayley and found no evidence of her existence. Not even footprints in the soft dirt.

 He swallowed dryly. He was going insane. That was the last straw, back there with the bloody birds, and now his mind had caved. He had snapped and his sanity was now rapidly slipping. Soon he would wake up in a hospital for the criminally insane, waiting for the men in the nice white coats to give him his valium.

 He turned towards the cliff edge. The earth below was churning softly and slowly in the water. It smelt of the park across from his home, of when it freshly rained there.

 “Felix! Are you alright?!” it was Luke this time.

 “Yeah!”

 He could see Luke pointing off to his right. The slope was a lot gentler there and trees were still sitting, stiff and shocked, over there. He could see the slope leading up to a peak level with his companions.

 “Got it!” he headed towards the slope.

 Luke watched him before really observing the slope. He whistled at the massive drop.

 “This used to be all level until the cliffs, which was a sheer drop. The dirt must have given way to the rain.”

 “No shit, Sherlock.” Lizz sneered.

 He glared at her. Amy looked up at the sea on the horizon. There was a long white line along the flat distance. It shimmered as light hit it. At least the clouds were breaking. It was rare for weather to effect the whole island, it did happen every now and then, it snowed once even, but it didn’t happen a lot. At least it would shine again soon.

 “Amy… Amy. Come on.” Luke insisted.

 She felt herself grow angry at his voice. Everyone listened to him but they ignored her. Why was she so easily led? Why couldn’t she have been stronger, like Hayley? Hayley was quiet and very closed off, but she took no prisoners. She feared few humans at least. She remembered that there had been a lad, about sixteen, here once called Fredrick.

 No one had to second guess why he had been here. He had a typical bully and had a fondness for woman, even running for his life had not lowered his libido any. He had tried to brow beat Hayley into sleeping with him. She had had none of it. When he grabbed her, she threatened to punch him. He had not heeded and she whacked him hard enough around the jaw that he had lost three teeth. It’s to be expected when the head of a lighter makes direct contact with your jaw. If nothing else, Hayley had been resourceful.

 That had been the last time that he tried his luck with the ladies. Days later, he was slaughtered by a Raincoat. It had been the first time they had seen one.

 Luke frowned. It wasn’t like Amy to ignore him, and she must have heard him, her expression changed when he spoke. She had heard him.

 “Oi! Amy! Come on, we have to go!” she looked up at him this time. She seemed angry.

 “We have to go now. Look everyone is leaving without us.”

 She stood and walked away “Hardly…”

 He frowned, wondering if he had actually heard correctly. He shook his head and continued walking.

 The group was passing Felix as he started up the edge. Ashley and Neil were waiting for him. Neil smiled at him and patted his back.

 “Your glasses are broken, mate. But could have been worse, I mean that cliff was bloody close. How you didn’t go over it amazes me.”

 Felix pulled off his glasses “I… I don’t know. Bad luck I guess.”

 He said off-handedly. He squinted and saw that his glasses were indeed cracked with one slot of glass having removed itself from the frames altogether. The reinforced glass had held up well up until now at least.

 “Being alive in this place at all it bad luck.”

 Ashley looked at him “You’ve changed your tone.”

 “Yeah, being in this place messes with your head. What you said early, Felix, made a lot of sense. But it also makes sense that we can redeem ourselves too. Maybe if we try to protect each other, then maybe we can one day go home too.”

 “I doubt it.” Luke muttered.

 “Look! Just because you have to give up doesn’t mean I have to.” Neil jabbed a finger at him. Why did everyone give up so quickly after they were so hopeful? Even he did.

 “How can you not give up after those birds?! What, are you deaf and didn’t hear any of them?! Fuck that man! It’s complete bullocks!”

 “Reacting to a question that doesn’t exist, brilliant. Well done.” Said Neil, sarcastically.

 “Oh, fuck off!”

 Amy scowled. Her cheeks flared up with anger and embarrassment. Neil was right. Why did they have to listen to Luke all the time, especially when he was talking out of his ass?

 “Shut up.”

 They shut up and looked at her. Her glare was directed at Luke “Will you just shut up! Neil’s right, why do we have to give up because you want us to?! Why should we?!”

 “Amy…? I thought-“

 “You see, that’s the problem! You don’t think at all! Quit acting like I will always take your side! I’m sick of listening to you!”

 With that she stormed off. The sudden outburst, no matter how brief, had shocked them.

 “What the hell was that about?” Luke asked.

 Ashley shook his head “If you don’t know, then something’s wrong.”

 “What’s that supposed to mean?!” Luke snapped as the three other teens walked away.

 “Like he said, you should know already.” Neil called back.

 “Get back here!” Luke ran after them as a group came to an opening. On this side of the cliffs, there was a lower plate beyond it. The sun was well below where it should have been. It was just touching the sea on the horizon and the grey clouds focused the light on them. The opening was a round area with soft dirt, which looked too dry, as if it had been recently raked.

 “We are not done with this! How dare you talk to me like that!” Luke spat in Neil’s face.

 Amy whirled around “Like what?! Like you have no authority over us?! Because you don’t!”

 “Who’s been protecting you for all these years?!”

 “I have, you arrogant brat!” Lizz shouted.

 “Yeah!” shouted a lad on the other side of the opening. Several others agreed with him.

 “And who taught you how to survive!? Who?! Me! That’s who!”

 “Will you just shut the fuck up mate! No one wants to listen to you and your doomsday bullshit! We’ve had enough of it!”

 “What! Had enough of the truth?! We’re not going home because we’re here to die! We- Are never- Going- HOME!”

 The words lingered in the air long after the ground gave way and started spinning inwards like a muddy whirlpool. And it didn’t stop going. Anyone who had been standing in the center of the opening was gone, crushed in the vortex.

 Lizz scrambled for the top of the cave-in. Amy was beside her, clawing for dear life. Neil and Ashley were trying desperately to grip the edge they were so close to.

 So close.

 Luke was half buried in the earth, frantically trying to dig himself out.

 Only Felix had escaped unharmed. He was watching in horror at the sight before him.

 “Help! Get us outta here!”

 Help…

 “Save us!”

 Save me…

  _Stop them, Felix!_

 He lunged at the two closest to him, grabbing that their hands in sheer panic.

 “No more! No more death! None of you deserve to die! None! Who is someone else to decide that!” he screamed, tear poured down his cheeks.

 “Look out!” Ashley squealed.

 Behind him was a Raincoat. But this time it was different. This one was in a bone white raincoat and towered over them in a way a normal Raincoat simply couldn’t.

 Felix’s stomach churned and bile hit his throat. He pushed it back and turned back to them “Fuck it! I’d rather die with a good intention in my heart than die a guilty murderer!”

 He pulled as hard as he could on their hands, towards the Raincoat. It watched him struggled before wrapping its arms around Felix’s chest. He swallowed.

 “Let go! It’ll kill you!”

 “No!”

 He could feel the long thick fingers around his chest, rather than claws. Its fur poured out of it sleeves and tickled him as it pulled. On the back of its wrists jutted a large, dark bone, which could have doubled as a shield and sword.

 It pulled him with great strength, dragging his friends with him. They scrambled over the edge, their legs kicking the dirt further in.

 They panted with exhaustion and terror as Felix released them, giving them a chance to run. But they couldn’t. Not after him risking himself for them.

 They grabbed him and pulled.

 Pull…

 It was futile against the might of this new Raincoat. And some part of them knew this. But they still struggled regardless.

 Do it.

 Save him!

 Save them!

 SAVE YOURSELVES!

 It released the crying teen and they stumbled backwards. Looking at it in shock, they watched as it lifted it monkey-like hand and pointed at the earth vortex.

 Save yourselves.

 You _can_ do it.

 They turned and grabbed at the hands of people reaching for help. When they came out, they ran. Ran straight to their doom.

 The large Raincoat would stab and slash at anyone who came near them. One kid ran straight into its talon.

 “We’re pulled these people to their death!”

 “A quick death! They deserve no less if death is the only way!”

 Luke managed to pull himself up from the pit and watched in horror as Amy and Lizz flailed near the bottom. He reached down and pulled a guy who had been near them up.

 “Why didn’t you help them?! Why?!” he screamed in his face before throwing him aside and sliding down the wall of the pit. Amy looked up and screamed.

 “Go back! Go back!”

 He stopped, trying to keep himself from falling in further.

 “Go back!” Lizz snapped “I’ve got her! Don’t worry! Help the others!”

 They appeared to be swimming in the brown dirt, which seemed to be turning into mud. He watched his sister.

 “Go!” he voice was shrill.

 He found himself turning around and scampering up the ledge before climbing over the top.

 Amy turned to Lizz, her face calm but sad, and asked “We’re going to die, aren’t we?”

 Lizz reached over and grabbed her hand and held it tightly “Not on my watch! I’m not losing you too! No more! It’s enough! It’s more than enough. Don’t let go!”

 They pressed on harder than before, making progress this time.

 More Raincoats appeared as more teenagers escaped. Some were going so far as to kick them back in. It was carnage. Loud and chaotic. The bodies piled up quickly and soon there was only a few left. Some had heard the screaming and had let themselves be sucked into the pit.

 Lizz and Amy had almost made it to the top of the pit and desperately clutching for their friend’s hands.

 They pulled and pulled.

 They were over.

 They turned and ran.

 The new Raincoats didn’t move to attack them. All six made it past them, despite them being clumped together as a group, holding each other’s hands as if it was the only thing keeping them alive.

 They dashed through the trees, panting and crying.

 When they finally slowed, they had arrived at an opening in the trees. They gasped for breath, looking at each other. Luke was chuckling lightly and wasn’t before long that everyone was.

 The chuckling grew to full scale laughing. It was hysterical and full of relief.

 They didn’t notice it becoming darker.

 “Now what?” heaved Neil. He was leaning on his knees, gasping loudly.

 “What we’ve always done: keep going.”

 Amy sighed and looked around herself when she felt the air grow suddenly cold and light droplets hit her neck. It was startling darker than before.

 “Guys?”

 They had noticed it too.

 “What’s happening?” asked Ashley.

 “I don’t know.” Luke replied.

 The trees faded and the ground gave way to concrete. The grey compound made a large platform. Down beside it was a railway track.

 “No way…”

 The Train rocketed past and slowed to a stop. The lights inside were bright against the consuming blackness. The doors opened and they remember seeing this before.

 “No way…”

 But they walked on regardless, each slowly and one-by-one. The second everyone was on board, the doors slammed shut.

 They watched it with disbelief as what was happening sunk in. The Train lurched and set off. They sat down as it pulled away from the platform.

 “Are we-?”

 “Going home?”

 Home…

 They knew the answer.

 Yes.

 They watched as the rain poured down the windows and eventually fade altogether, waiting.

 Soon, some were asleep. Waiting. For what seemed like hours. There was relief in the carriage and everyone relaxed, as if years of pain and fear was finally leaving them. Those who were awake smiled softly at each and those who rested did so without worry.

 They had not felt so safe in so long. It was like waking up from a horrible dream, not knowing what had happened since. No one was giddy with excitement or worried about what was ahead for them.

 For three of them the world would have changed drastically, but they felt no nerves about it. It would be fine because they would adapt. As humans always have.

 After what seemed like hours, the Train slowed. It suddenly passed buildings and city lights and trees and homes. They could see Manchester lit up like a Christmas tree. The Train slowed further as they entered a quiet residential area. All the house lights were out but they could see two people as they walked into the street.

 Two very shocked people.

 The Train stopped.

 And the group could see them clearly.

 Hayley and Derek were standing in the street watching them. Derek’s leg was in a cast and he was on crutches. But they were there and alive.

 They were home.

 Home.

 The doors opened and they ran out and greeted their friends with a joy they had forgotten.

 Because at that point they realized something. It wasn’t a Train of Punishment.

 It was a Train of Redemption.


End file.
